Smile
by Open Casket Ceremony
Summary: Ichigo and Matsumoto have something in common: They'd both do anything to make Hitsugaya smile again. In the end, though, it was all their selfish desires that led to disaster. IchiHitsu, MatsuGin. Warnings: Sappy drama and uncalled for mass slaughter.
1. Heating Up

Author's Note: I was kind of stuck and having writer's block on my other fic, _The Pursuit of Happiness,_ so I started a new one. It might not turn out very well, but whatever. I'll finish the other one as soon as the inspiration gets to me. In the meantime, here's my newsest work-in-progress.

* * *

"Wow, it must suck to live here," Ichigo mused. He had come to Soul Society as a substitute shinigami, thus being ambassador and link between the real world and Soul Society. The weather was hot and stagnant, not a pleasant day to be outdoors, but Ichigo had nowhere else to hang out except outside with Renji. "Following orders all day, and nothing but ugly mugs to look at." 

"Shut up," Renji retorted. The two had been resting under the shade of a tree somewhere near the sixth division barracks, being the good buddies they were. "You'll need to learn how to follow orders, too. When you die, you'll be stuck here, unless you die again."

"This is boring," the strawberry yawned, stretching and rumpling his hair, achieving nothing, aside from making it even messier than it already was. "Let's go hang out with the eleventh division guys. They're fun. Tons more fun than you, I bet."

"Ikkaku and Yumichika?"

"Yeah."

"I don't see why not," Renji shrugged as he stood up, followed by Ichigo. "They're never working over there, so I bet they're not busy right now."

So the two set off, moving quickly with the aid of shunpo through the rows and rows of buildings that made up the Seireitei. Past the seventh division, past the eighth, past the ninth, until they finally stopped to rest for a while near the tenth division barracks.

"Damn, it's hot," Ichigo whined. "You guys don't even have air conditioning up here. It sucks. What are you guys, Amish?"

"What's Amish?" Renji inquired curiously.

"They're these freaks who live in the 'States. They don't use computers and air conditioning and electrical stuff like that."

"What's the 'States?"

"Some other country."

"Is that so?"

"Yep, and it's never as hot over there as it in Soul Society, I bet," Ichigo responded, tugging at the collar of his shihakusho uncomfortably. "And it's not just any hot. It's the type of hot that's all gross and sticky. Way more humid than it is in the real world," he complained as they continued on.

"Get used to it and take it like a man, strawberry."

"Oh, shut up!"

"Make me! Hey, by the way, Ichigo…Ichigo?"

Renji turned to the side, only to find Ichigo wasn't next to him anymore. He looked to the other side. No Ichigo in sight, not even a single orange hair. He swiveled his head to look behind himself. Aha. There he was.

The strawberry was simply standing there like an idiot, staring at something. Upon closer inspection, Renji found he wasn't staring at something, but rather, someone.

In particular, a white-haired boy in a captain's haori, standing before of a large group of uniformed shinigami in front of the tenth division barracks.

"Oi, Ichigo! What're you doing?" the redhead demanded as he made his way back to Ichigo's side. "What're you ogling at?"

"Who's he?" Ichigo demanded bluntly.

"Who're you talking about?"

"The small one. Is he a captain? 'Cause he's wearing the haori and everything…"

"Yeah, you seem to be staring at the ass of the one and only Hitsugaya-taichou."

"Huh," Ichigo simply grunted in response. "Seriously? But he's only a kid…Hey, is there something wrong with him? His facial color doesn't look so great."

"It's the heat," Renji explained. "Hitsugaya-taichou never does so well in the heat."

"Tenth-division taichou?"

"Yep."

"Man, when I die and become an official shinigami, I'd sure like to be in the tenth division…" Ichigo sighed.

"Are you insane!?" Renji spluttered. "You _want_ to be in the tenth division!?"

"Definitely! I mean, _I_ wouldn't mind having a pretty kid like that for my taichou. Never seen anyone like him before."

"Do you even know what you're saying?"

"Uh, yeah?"

"_No,_ you do not know, you idiot!" Renji scolded. "That's Captain Hitsugaya Toshiro we're talking about here! _No one_ in the right mind wants to be in tenth division! For the love of all things good, he's the weilder of Hyorinmaru!"

"Hyorinmaru?" Ichigo repeated in disbelief. "No way! Not that kid! Rukia told me that Hyorinmaru was the strongest and scariest ice-type zanpaku-to in not just the Seireitei, but also the entire Soul Society!"

"And she's right! You have _no_ idea how scary Hitsugaya-taichou is. His zanpaku-to can freeze your blood, literally. Sure, the kid's got a real pretty face, but he's also got a heart as cold as the ice he works with. No, colder…Like dry ice. You know what's colder than dry ice?"

"No, what?"

"I'll tell you what. _Hitsugaya Toshiro._ I know his fukutaichou personally. She complains to me all the time of mountains of paperwork that he makes her do and how mean he is to everyone in his division. I've heard rumors that if you fall asleep during meetings or mission briefings, he'll cut out your tongue. Take a good look at him, because that should be the last time you do. Hitsugaya-taichou is someone we'll spend the rest of our lives wanting, and never having, and always avoiding, 'cause he's a cold-hearted kid who's incapable of loving, got it?"

"No way!" Ichigo insisted. "You're wrong about him! He can't be as bad as you say he is! Look at him…He looks like he's going to faint from heat stroke any second now! He's really…He's really fragile. More than you'd think."

Renji let out a long sigh. "I suppose he _did_ love someone, once."

"Really? Ha! I told you…Hang on, what happened?"

"There was this guy he used to go out with," Renji explained nonchalantly. "Kusaka Sojiro, that was his name. Nice guy. Funny, too. Loved Hitsugaya-taichou to bits. And Hitsugaya-taichou loved him, too."

"Well, where is he now?"

"Dead. And after that, Hitsugaya-taichou turned into an empty shell of ice."

"Oh. That's…That's tragic, I guess."

"You bet. Well, just keep watching him, and you'll see what a heartless brat he really is."

"Is there any reason why I did not receive a report from the latest patrol in the real world?"

The entire group standing in front of the tenth division office, and though all of them grown men, they couldn't help but feel a slight chill in their bones, flinching at the cold tone of voice used by their young and almost innocent-looking captain.

"F-Forgive us, Hitsugaya-taichou, but…"

"No, I don't want to hear any excuses," the white-haired boy standing in front of the group and admonishing them bluntly cut the speaker off. "I just want to know, where the hell is the report?"

Trembling, the unfortunate shinigami who had just spoken reached into the folds of his shihakusho and pulled out a small, folded piece of paper. He stepped out of line and fearfully held it out to his captain, who took it with his slender fingers.

Hitsugaya pursed his lips distastefully as he unfolded the paper and scanned it with stunningly colored aquamarine eyes. "Late," he commented icily. "Three days late. And why is that, may I ask?"

"I-I'm sorry…But I forgot, and…And…"

"Never mind, silence yourself. Now I want to know who wrote this."

"It was me, sir," came another voice.

Hitsugaya narrowed his eyes, muttering, "I know monkeys with neater handwriting than yours." He turned to a tall and attractive strawberry-blonde woman next to her, who seemed to be his fukutaichou, in other words, his assistant captain.

"Matsumoto."

"Yes, taichou?"

"Throw this pathetic excuse for a report away."

"Sure thing, taichou."

"And you, you who wrote it. I want you to re-do it, in legible handwriting, and I want it in my office before eight o'clock tonight, understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Taichou?" Matsumoto whispered, poking her captain's shoulder. "Ne, taichou."

"What is it? I'm busy right now."

With a giggle, the buxom fukutaichou gestured to two figures standing a good distance away. "That orange-haired shinigami, the one standing next to Renji-kun…he's ogling your ass," she snickered.

Hitsugaya's face instantly flushed a bright red as the group of shinigami he had been addressing began chuckling amongst themselves.

"Ne, taichou! Maybe you can get laid tonight!"

"Shut up," Hitsugaya growled heatedly, but with no avail.

"Ooh, taichou! The punk's not bad-looking! Maybe you should go talk to him!"

"Go for it! Go for third base and beyond!"

"We're behind you all the way, taichou!"

"Hey, taichou! Today's a good day as any to get shot of your virginity…Or did you already lose it to that Kusaka guy?"

That final comment seemed to be the last straw.

"I said for all of you useless wretches to shut up!" Hitsugaya shouted angrily, the temperature dropping exponentially. This was more than enough to make everyone fall into immediate silence.

"Who just said that about Kusaka?" he demanded venomously.

"I-It was me, sir…" a shinigami piped up shamefully.

"You," Hitsugaya hissed in a voice so cold that everyone seemed to involuntarily shiver, as if their blood was being frozen in their veins. "I will _not_ tolerate you dishonoring his name, even if it has already been half a century since his death. I want you _out_ of the tenth division within an hour, do you hear me?"

"But, taichou! I was only joking…"

"Do not make me repeat myself."

"Yes, taichou…"

Hitsugaya then turned to Matsumoto. "Take over for me and explain the next mission to them. I can't stand this heat anymore."

"Yes, taichou. Go on and have a good rest."

And with that, the taichou of the tenth division had disappeared into his office.

Meanwhile, Ichigo and Renji were still watching from a safe distance.

"…."

"…."

"He _is_ kind of scary."

"What did I tell you, Ichigo?"

"But he's not as bad as you think," Ichigo insisted. "There's something more to him than that weird and creepy coldness, I know it. I can feel it."

"You just keep telling yourself that, but _I_ can feel that Hitsugaya-taichou is _really_ pissed off – and it's all because of you staring at him and all those comments back there. Good job, he'll probably hate you for the rest of your life now."

"You think so?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I think you're wrong," Ichigo declared.

"Psh," Renji scoffed. "Do whatever you want, but don't come crying to me if he turns you into a strawberry popsicle. Anyways, let's get a move on, we've got eleventh-squad'ers to entertain."

"You know what, Renji? You go on ahead without me. There's something I need to do."

* * *

Author's Note: How was it, yay or nay? 


	2. Oh, Crap

Author's Note: How's the fic going so far? Please give me your constructive criticism.

* * *

As Hitsugaya entered his office and slid the door shut behind him, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh as he plopped down on the plush couch. It was weird to not see his vice-captain sleeping there for a change.

He ran his hands through his silvery hair, fanning himself with his hand – The heat was oppressive, and at this rate, it would weaken him and sap his strength like a parasite.

Tugging at the collar of his kimono uncomfortably, he made his way into the bathroom, where he leaned over the tub and turned the tap on, watching as the water splashed to the white porcelain bottom. He moved a hand under the spray, letting the cold water run over his hands before with a nod of satisfaction, he walked back outside into his office to wait for the tub to fill with the frigid liquid.

After the removal of his heavy garments, he returned to the bathroom, shutting the door and latching it shut behind him, lest he be disturbed during his personal rest. He then slipped into the tub, a shudder running up his spine as the chilly water settled around his body while he slid comfortably in.

And so for the next ten minutes or so he simply sat there quietly in the cold water in such a position that it came up to his shoulders, his head resting comfortably against the tub's cold white rim. He traced ripples into the water with his fingers, sighing in worry. He was still quite stressed out about the tons of paperwork that he still had to get finished, since his fukutaichou was quite the slacker. In addition, he had several important missions coming up, and tomorrow was a very important day as well.

His reiatsu was making the water even colder, and by now, mist was drifting off the water's surface, consuming the bathroom in a thin blanket of fog. With another sigh, Hitsugaya slid further down into the water, relieved that he was no longer under attack of the heat.

As much as he would like to, the young captain was fully aware of the fact that he was wasting precious time by idling about in the cold bath. With yet another sigh of irritation, he pulled the drain plug and reached over to grab a towel, which he promptly wrapped around his body upon realization that he had left his clothes in his office. If Matsumoto was in there, he had no intention of parading out naked. It would still be embarrassing, but having a towel would be better than nothing.

As soon as Renji was out of eyesight, Ichigo glanced back towards the tenth division barracks – the captain had disappeared into his office, and the assistant captain was still briefing the others on the next mission.

With the aid of shunpo, he made his way quietly and quickly around the group, slipping soundlessly into the tenth division office when he was sure no one was watching, quietly shutting the doors behind him.

He looked around in the office. It was a fairly neat room, with little furnishings and virtually no decorations or adornments. On the desk, piles and piles of mountainous paperwork had been arranged and sorted into several neat piles.

Other than that, the room was also notably cold. Ichigo couldn't help but shiver, wondering how in the world it could be summer outdoors and the dead of winter indoors. The office seemed to be deserted, as well. Had the young captain left? With a shrug, Ichigo decided to have a seat on the inviting plush couch and wait for his return or for something else to happen.

He plopped himself down, enjoying the soft feel of the plush against his back. It was quiet, a little too quiet for his tastes, the only exception being his own breathing and the ticking of a clock mounted on the wall.

"This is boring," he muttered to himself. "Maybe I should just get out of here and come back later…"

His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden sound of a door being opened from somewhere behind him, followed by an overwhelming blast of frigid air, nearly scaring him out of his skin. He spun around to take a look, mouth quickly opening to form an apology, but the words instantly disappeared when the sight met his eyes.

Hitsugaya Toshiro, the captain of the tenth division.

Standing in the doorway of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his nearly-naked body, his hair still damp and his skin still dewy.

Ichigo could seriously feel a nosebleed coming up. Heavens, the boy's body was perfect to the point of sinfulness. His face was heating up, but he could not tear his eyes away.

Hitsugaya looked up, stopping abruptly as his cerulean eyes met Ichigo's brown ones, a look of horror instantly finding its way into his features, a blush springing to his cheeks as he clasped the towel to his body with his dainty fingers, mortified.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Ichigo blurted, quickly clapping his hands over his eyes. "I…er…I'm not looking anymore, uh…I…I'm so sorry, I didn't know that you were in here…"

Watching him suspiciously, Hitsugaya snatched his clothes from the area he had left them, clutching them to his chest. "I…Did you…Did you need to see me?"

"Yeah," Ichigo managed to answer, his hands still pressed tightly over his eyes, which were also squeezed shut. "But, um, you can get dressed first…"

Hitsugaya quickly ducked into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him, still horrorstruck and humiliated. A complete _stranger_ had just seen him in an almost-naked state, and this did not sit well with him at all.

Though the stranger hadn't really been that bad-looking, either…

Shaking the thoughts out of his head, Hitsugaya quickly slipped into his kimono, pulling on his hakama and haori on afterwards and hanging the towel up, exiting the bathroom.

Ichigo watched as the young captain stepped back out into the office, fumbling with his obi belt in the process.

"H-Here, let me help you with that," Ichigo offered quickly as he sprang from his seat on the couch, reaching over and gently securing the strip of fabric around the boy's slim waist. "There you go."

"I don't recall asking for your assistance," Hitsugaya replied stiffly as he straightened his robes. "It's not like I don't know how to tie my own obi."

"Yeah…Sorry…"

"And since you've already so _rudely_ entered my office without permission, I'm assuming there's something you want from me. You don't look familiar to me, though…What's your name?"

"Kurosaki Ichigo. And, and you're Toshiro, right?"

"Hitsugaya-taichou," he corrected icily.

"R-Right. Hitsugaya-taichou."

"And, Kurosaki, what is it that you want? I'm busy right now and I'd appreciate it if you made this quick. And I mean _quick_." His voice was oddly intimidating, and it send shudders down the strawberry's back.

"Uh…Uh…Well, I heard from Renji, you know, the sixth division fukutaichou…Well, I heard from him that you were stressed out lately, so I was wondering, um…Um, maybe I'd kind of, you know, try to help you relieve some of that stress, and, so...I was kind of hoping you'd like to, er, have dinner with me tomorrow?"

Hitsugaya stared at him with an expression of curiosity. "Are you…Are you asking me out on a _date_, Kurosaki?"

"Y-Yeah. Definetely. N-No! I meant, you know….just…just…" he spluttered lamely.

"You know, you're the fifth person who's asked me that question this week. Although you and I have barely even met. "

"Well, you're…You're really pretty, so I'm not surprised."

Hitsugaya did not seem pleased by the comment at all. "Tell me, Kurosaki Ichigo, which division do you belong to?"

"None, Toshiro – I mean, I mean Hitsugaya-taichou. I'm just a substitute shinigami."

"Hmm, I see. I've heard stories about your strength. And they're actually rather impressive stories."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"So, um, about tomorrow, then…"

"I'll have to reply in the same way I reply to everyone else, Kurosaki, and that means that I'm afraid that I will have to turn down your offer, generous as it is. I have something of utmost importance to attend to tomorrow, and joining you for dinner would be most disrespectful on such an occasion…"

"Whaddya mean disrespectful? It can't be that bad, now can it?"

"If you must know," Hitsugaya answered, and Ichigo could have sworn he heard a hint of sadness fringing the edges of his tone. "Tomorrow is the anniversary of the death of someone who was very important to me when he was alive. I do not wish to disrespect his memory."

"You mean that Sojiro guy?" Ichigo inquired, a little too boldly.

Hitsugaya's eyes flashed for a brief moment of anger. "Yes," he answered coldly, "And you will refer to him in a more respectful manner."

"Y-Yeah. Sorry."

"If you'll excuse me now, Kurosaki-kun, I have business to attend to. You are excused now."

"So, um…how about another day?"

Hitsugaya cocked his head, interest in his voice. "You are a stubborn one, aren't you?"

"Sorry, that's just how I am."

"Very well. I will consider a different day, Kurosaki-kun. You're an interesting person and it would be to my benefit to find out who you _really_ are."

Ichigo gulped at this, a sensation unlike any other he had felt sparking in his brain. "Yeah, anytime, Hitsugaya-taichou. I…I'd really like to see you again, so um…Yeah…I guess I'll be off now."

And with that, he scrambled hastily out of the office, wondering what the hell he had just gotten himself into.


	3. Heartless

Author's Note: This chapter is a little longer than my other ones would normally be. And, by the way, this isn't really going to be a humorfic, not really in the style of _Fishing_ or _The Pursuit of Happiness_, for that matter. In fact, I don't even normally write in that style, so yeah...

* * *

"You _what_!?" 

"God, don't make me repeat it," Ichigo grumbled to a very shocked Renji, who was gaping at him like there were rabbits squirming out of his nostrils.

"Seeing him come out of the shower is one thing, but…You _asked out _Hitsugaya-taichou!? You're crazy!" the redhead squawked in disbelief. "What did he say?"

"Apparently, tomorrow's the day that some guy died," Ichigo shrugged, "So he said, maybe another day, and that he'd think about it."

"Wow," Renji muttered, shaking his head. "Hitsugaya-taichou hasn't been out with another person in about fifty years, ever since that guy died…You know, Ichigo, there's got to be something special he sees in you. He _never_ says yes to date requests, and I mean, never."

"Really? Well, he _did_ say that he was impressed by the stories he heard about me…"

"You see!? He _likes_ you!"

"Shut up! He does _not_ like me!"

"Well, _you_ definitely like _him_, if you tried asking him out when you barely even knew who he was."

"So what if I do like him?" Ichigo shot back defensively. "_You_ said he was pretty yourself, too!"

"Yeah, he's pretty alright, but he's scary."

"He's not as bad as you say he is! He's just really stressed out, that's all! And there's loads more to him besides being pretty. He's really smart, you know. It's not everyday that you come across someone with looks _and_ brains. Have you ever heard him talk before? You get the feeling that he knows _everything_ when he speaks. And he's…he's _not_ scary. Honestly, he-"

"Man, you're so lame, Ichigo, who cares if the kid's got brains!?" Renji interrupted. "Focus on the more important things! What'd he look like nearly naked?"

"_Renji!_" Ichigo hissed angrily. "Is _all_ you care about his _body_!? God, you're so shallow! Like I said, there's so much more to him than his appearance! I can feel it! There's a lot more about him, but he's hiding it from us!"

"Okay, fine, maybe his skull's loaded with smarts, but…" At this point, Renji placed a hand over his chest. "…But he's got _nothing _over here. Nothing."

"God, you're acting like he's some heartless whore who's going to break all of our hearts and make us upset to the point of considering suicide," Ichigo grumbled with a roll of his chocolate-colored eyes.

"Because that's _exactly_ what he is!" Renji snapped. "I've known him longer than you have, Ichigo, and this is my honest opinion on him, and I'm warning you, as a friend. Look at him. Seriously. He's got the prettiest face in Soul Society and he knows it, so what does he do? He parades around in that damned haori, showing off his figure and batting his stupid eyelashes at everyone that passes him like some vapid hooker bitch. And you know what? He _likes_ the attention. He _likes_ the idea of everyone loving him but unable to have him. He's going to use you, Ichigo. You know what he wants from you? He wants your name next to his. He wants _everyone_ in Soul Society to talk about the two of you, he wants to be known as Hitsugaya Toshiro, the little boyfriend of the powerful substitute shinigami who single-handedly destroyed the Sokyoku. He wants everyone to be jealous, of both you and himself. Do you get what I'm saying?"

"No!" Ichigo shot back angrily. "He's not like that! He does _not_ "bat" his eyelashes, and he is _not_ a "vapid hooker bitch," I can't even believe you'd _call_ him that. Why would you say that about him!? And he _has_ to wear that haori anyways, since he's a taichou, you think he wears it for a fashion statement!? No! He's only following orders! He's not heartless, either, he's just sensitive after his old boyfriend died! You've got to stop talking all this shit about him, or I will _hurt_ you. In fact…I bet you're jealous. I bet you're mad because _you_ wanted to ask him out yourself, and you're trying to make me hate him! I'm right, aren't I!?"

"Shut up!" Renji retorted. "You're really naive, you know that, strawberry!? He's going to break your heart, and when he does, don't come crying back to me! I warned you, so don't claim I didn't!"

"Fine!" Ichigo shouted. "I don't need your shitty advice anyways! You'll see, Renji, I'll show you that Hitsugaya Toshiro's _not_ the slut that you make him sound like!"

"Ha! Good luck with that, but in the end, nothing's going to come out of it."

With a final fierce glare, Ichigo stood up abruptly, turning to leave.

"Ichigo, wait!"

"What do you want!?"

"Just one quick question, okay?"

"_Fine_, what is it?"

"Um, well…" Renji muttered sheepishly, "Did you, um…Did you manage to get pictures of him, you know, after he came out of the shower?"

_"No!"_ Ichigo yelped, disgusted. "What, you think I carry a camera around with me everywhere just in case I happen to see something like that!? Maybe _you_ might, but I'm not that low, okay!?"

"Well, if things go well between you guys, then do you think, um…Do you reckon you _could_ get some pictures of that for me? I mean, I'm your friend, right, and I bet the other guys would love to see that, too…"

"You're disgusting! You and your pervy friends, all of you are full of crap!"

And with that, Ichigo stormed away.

He was coming up with a plan, and he knew exactly who he was going to speak with in order to get a step closer to Hitsugaya.

After all, there was no better resource than the boy's fukutaichou, Matsumoto Rangiku.

* * *

The next day, promptly after waking up, Hitsugaya got out of bed quickly and quietly, not stopping to have any breakfast besides the usual piping hot cup of green tea in his office. 

His fukutaichou was asleep on the couch, as usual, a small blanket draped over her reclining form. She had probably been pulling an all-nighter in an attempt to help him finish the paperwork without his knowing.

"Arigatou, Matsumoto," Hitsugaya whispered as he readjusted the blanket on her body for maximum coverage. He knew it was chilly in his office on account of his icy reiatsu, and Matsumoto often complained about it.

"Hn?" the strawberry blonde woman grunted, rolling over on her side and blinking sleepily. "Why're you already up, taichou?"

"I'm going out," Hitsugaya answered quietly. "It's that day again."

"Ah, okay, then. Don't worry, taichou, you can count on me to keep the tenth division organized today."

"Good. I'll see you later, then, and if you have spare time, get as much as the paperwork done as you can, understood?"

"That's no fun!"

"I'm not asking you whether it's "fun" or not. I'm asking you if you understood."

"Yeah, yeah, I understand. Look, it's five in the morning, okay? Let me at least get some more sleep before you get on my case, taichou."

"I'm sorry," Hitsugaya muttered grumpily.

"No worries."

"Well…I'll be off then."

"Mm-hmm. See 'ya later, taichou."

And with that, Hitsugaya was off, shunpo'ing through the Seireitei, his destination being its outskirts near the gates, where various graves had been posted for hundreds of shinigami that had died, most of them having been killed in the line of duty.

After a while of moving, he finally reached a grassy knoll, atop which sat a plain gray headstone, with nothing more etched into its surface except for the words, "Kusaka Sojiro."

He stopped, making his way up the knoll, before pausing in front of the headstone, his eyes running over the name engraved there. He let out a long and reminiscent sigh before dropping to the floor in a bow, touching his forehead to the grassy ground.

He held the position for a moment, before he pushed himself back up to his knees and sat in front of the headstone, reaching out to brush his fingers against the cold stone.

"How many years has it been?" he asked, as if there was actually someone there to hear him speak. "How many years have passed since you left me?"

There was a silence before Hitsugaya let out yet another sigh, staring quietly and contemplatively at the plain grave.

"Aha! Found you! So _this_ is where you've been!"

Startled, Hitsugaya turned at the sudden sound of a loud voice interrupting his thoughts and his private time. His eyes met flaming orange hair.

"Kurosaki?" he grumbled, irritated. "In case you haven't noticed, this isn't an occasion for you to come lumbering about and shouting as you please."

"It's not?"

"No! Weren't you even listening to me yesterday?"

"Yeah, but I thought you might be sad today, so, um…I kind of wanted to see if you needed any company."

"Thank you for considering," Hitsugaya replied stiffly, "But, no. I don't need your company, or anyone else's, for that matter. How did you know to look for me here, anyway?"

"Oh," Ichigo shrugged nonchalantly. "Um, it was easy. I just had to ask Rangiku-san."

"Matsumoto?" Hitsugaya gave Ichigo an unhappy glare. "She was busy, and I don't appreciate that you had to insist on interrupting her. The tenth division has too many things to get done, and we don't need you meddling in our businesses. You are excused."

"Sorry, but, uh…You know, I was only trying to…Trying to help," the strawberry offered lamely and half-heartedly. Sometimes, he wished Hitsugaya wasn't as smart and quick-minded as he was. Then he'd never have to endure his biting remarks.

And then, he said something that was just plain _stupid_.

"And anyway, Toshiro, if you're so busy, then why're you spending time over here?"

That, obviously, had not been a very clever thing to say.

Hitsugaya seemed hurt at this remark, but even angrier than he was offended. Ichigo could tell because of the sudden scary drop in temperature.

"First of all, Kurosaki," he hissed, "It's _Hitsugaya-taichou_. Just because I said that I was impressed by your skills, it doesn't mean that you can get all conceited and address me so casually. Secondly, today is an extremely important day to me. Did you expect me to let you come marching up with that stupid oafish grin of yours, and openly disrespect both me and my former boyfriend's death? And thirdly, I believe I've already asked you to _leave_."

"I-I'm sorry!" Ichigo spluttered, horrified at his own tactlessness. "I…I didn't mean to offend you, or the other guy, I had no idea this was so important to you…"

"He was my_ fiancé_," Hitsugaya cut him off in an icy, bitter voice. I was still very young at the time, but I knew enough to know that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. I _loved_ him, Kurosaki, and…and…And why am I even telling you this anyway!? It's not like you _care_ or anything."

"What happened? How did he..."

"Oh, you want to know now, don't you?" Hitsugaya shot back icily. "I'll tell you how Kusaka Sojiro died - _I_ killed him. _I_ killed him, with _my_ own katana. I had no choice, the authorities in Soul Society facilitated it between us, kill or be killed, just because...because of our...I-It's none of your business. Are you happy now!?"

"Hey, don't be like that, it was only a question out of curiosity..."

"If you won't leave, then I will. Good bye." He stood abruptly, shoving past Ichigo with such ferocity that it startled the strawberry. But there was something else that he saw that seemed to stab him directly in the heart – The boy's eyes were brimming with tears that he was struggling to keep behind his dark lashes.

"Toshiro, wait…"

But he had already disappeared.

Which left Ichigo wondering if he had totally blown it.

If he had learned one lesson today, it was the fact that Hitsugaya Toshiro was _very_ easily annoyed and _very_ easily offended.


	4. Second Chances

Author's Note: In case you haven't noticed yet, in the story, Renji isn't going to be our happiest camper! Sorry, Renji fans...But I promise he won't be like, _evil_ or anything. Well, here's Chapter 4.

* * *

Matsumoto looked up as the door to the tenth division's office opened. Hastily, she leaped from the couch, shoving the bottle of sake she had been clutching between the cushions and scrambling towards the large oak desk. 

However, who entered was not her captain, as she had expected, but instead, Ichigo.

"Ah, Kurosaki-san!" she smiled gleefully, relaxing and pulling the forbidden bottle back out of its hiding place. "How'd things go with taichou?"

"Not good," Ichigo mumbled. "I just don't know how to _act_ in front of him without making a fool of myself or pissing him off. You've got to _tell_ me, Rangiku-san, what does Toshiro like? What does he _not_ like?"

"Well, he likes ama-natto," Matsumoto mused, "And tea. Yeah, he likes tea."

"That's not what I meant."

"Really?"

"Erm, no. I meant, what does he like, as in what does he like in people. What did that Sojiro fellow have that I don't?"

"Well," Matsumoto began after a moment of thinking, "It seems that taichou doesn't like people joking around, but that's really not it, 'cause I know that Sojiro-kun could always make him laugh. What he _really_ saw in Sojiro-kun was the fact that he respected him and saw him as a person, not a prodigy, and not just another pretty face."

"Hmm, I think I get it," Ichigo nodded. "So, he wants respect."

"Yep. Respect and an open mind. He knows there are lots of rumors circulating around the Seireitei about him, and he hates it when people actually believe the rumors."

"Rumors? You mean, like, the fact that he's…"

"…A vapid hooker bitch?"

"Yeah! That's what Renji said!" Ichigo exclaimed triumphantly.

"No wonder," Matsumoto answered. "Renji's the one who started that rumor."

"I knew it! I _knew_ I couldn't trust what he was saying! Thanks, Rangiku-san…"

"Hold on. There's one more thing taichou is looking for above everything else – Someone who can make him _happy_. He hasn't smiled at all since Sojiro died, and if you can make him smile again, Ichigo-kun…That's how you can tell if you've won the fight."

"Ah…I see. Great, then I'd better…"

"Hey, and, one last tip, Ichigo-kun."

"What?"

"_Don't_ talk about Sojiro-kun in front of him. Not until he trusts you. He's extremely sensitive about what happened…back then."

Now, this piqued Ichigo's curiosity. "Back then?" he repeated. "Rangiku-san….Tell me what happened."

"Fine," Matsumoto sighed, "But this is a secret between me and you, got it?"

"Got it."

"Well," she began, "A long time ago, when taichou was back in the academy, he and Sojiro-kun were the best of friends. Thick as thieves. Peas in a pod. You get the idea. And they became more than that, much more. They were in love, you know? Taichou was a pretty young thing back then, and he could have his pick of anyone in the whole academy if he wanted, because not a single guy could manage to keep their eyes off of him. He stuck with Sojiro-kun, though, and only Sojiro-kun, and it was all because of the fact that Sojiro-kun made him feel safe, loved, happy. Or maybe it was the fact that they both had the same zanpaku-to, Hyorinmaru. At any rate, they got along so well, that, even though taichou was still pretty young, they had the rest of their lives all planned out already. They were going to get married, settle down somewhere safe, and not bother with all that shinigami business, even though they were the top students of that year. Taichou loved him that much. He never wanted to be a captain, it never made him happy. But that's beyond the point. Soul Society wouldn't stand to let them stay together."

"What do you mean?"

"They claimed that it was a crime to share the same zanpaku-to. And so they forced the two of them, taichou and Sojiro-kun, to fight to the death to see who would keep Hyorinmaru. In the end, taichou won, but Sojiro-kun was badly injured. He was taken away, and no one knows what happened to him after that – It's likely that he bled to death from the wounds he received during their forced fight, but it's also possible that if he survived, he was put to death anyway by Soul Society. And taichou never forgave himself for it, or Soul Society, for that matter. He's still disgusted with himself, even now, for becoming a captain. Why should he serve for the people who forced him to kill the one person that he loved more than anyone else? He can't answer that question, it hurts too much. You know, the irony of it all is that he vowed to serve the sotaichou until his own death, yet, he still holds a grudge against them and himself for Sojiro-kun's death. You have to understand, Kurosaki-kun…Taichou's not a scary, strict, dictator of a captain. He's still in pain, he's still trying to recover. And the only way he knows how to do that is to close his heart so he won't fall in love again, 'cause he's scared that he'll be hurt again. Understand?"

Ichigo nodded slowly. "I get it," he answered. "Gosh, that must have really sucked, you know, when I talked to him earlier today, I could have sworn that he was close to crying."

"Unfortunately, taichou's far from an open book. You can never tell what he's thinking, really, because he tries so hard to hide himself from everyone and everything, but, I think you can flip through his pages easily, ne, Ichigo-kun? And I know exactly how you can start."

"Eh?"

Matsumoto beamed, moving over to the desk and patting the monstrous stack of paper.

"You can help us with _these_!"

"…"

"What?"

"Are you sure you're not…_exploiting_ my willingness to help Toshiro out?"

"No!" Matsumoto snorted with a wave of her hand. "Of course not! If we get these finished by the time he comes back, I bet taichou'll be a lot less stressed out."

Nodding in agreement, Ichigo hurried over to the desk, seizing a calligraphy brush, and with help from Matsumoto, began to help her slowly, but surely, tackle the load of work that had been set.

"You seem to know a lot about love, Rangiku-san."

"Eh, not really."

"No, seriously! You've got to be, like, the love expert or something! Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Nope."

"Okay, _did_ you have a boyfriend?"

There was an uncomfortable pause before Matsumoto thrust another handful of paper into Ichigo's hands. "Here," she demanded hastily, "These are important papers. Get them done."

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. There was _definitely_ something Matsumoto wasn't telling him about herself, but he decided not to press the subject further, seeing as she obviously didn't want to talk about it.

* * *

When Hitsugaya finally gathered up enough dignity to return to the tenth division office, it was already fairly late at night. The whole afternoon, he had been wandering aimlessly through the Seireitei, wondering if he had overreacted to Ichigo's comment, and if maybe, he had been a little to harsh towards him. Whatever the case was, he had already convinced himself that he would be unable to sufficiently apologize for his behavior earlier in the day, so what was the point of trying?

He made his way quietly down the paved pathway until he reached the office, his hand going for the handle of the door. As soon as he touched it, he heard Matsumoto shout at him from inside the room.

"Ne, taichou! Don't come in yet!"

Eyebrows furrowing in irritation, the boy crossed his arms impatiently over his chest. "Matsumoto, what is the meaning of this?" he demanded.

"Just 'cause!" Matsumoto yelled back. "Hold on…wait…Good! Okay, you can come in now."

"Finally," he growled as he pulled the door open. "You'd better have a good explanation as to why…" His voice trailed off as he entered the room, caught off guard by the abrupt and unexpected change he saw.

The entire room had been cleaned neatly, every last drawer had been organized, and there was not a single speck of dust to be seen. The floor had been swept to perfection, and every last surface had been polished. On his desk, there was not a single sheet of paperwork left to be filled out, replaced by three cups of piping hot green tea and three bowls of steaming rice, each accessorized with neatly cut slices of sashimi.

And behind the desk, both looking exhausted, yet proud of themselves, stood Matsumoto and Ichigo.

"Surprise, taichou!" Matsumoto giggled. "Ichigo-kun and I finished all the paperwork, and we had some time left over, so we cleaned the place up, too."

"Ah, and we reckoned you'd be hungry and tired," Ichigo added sheepishly, "So we also took the liberty of fixing you something to eat."

Hitsugaya simply stood there, speechless, completely unsure of what to say, before he finally managed to recapture his voice.

"Thank you, both of you," he spoke.

"Hey, don't worry about it," Matsumoto beamed. "C'mon, taichou, have a seat, and let's all sit down and talk things out, okay?"


	5. Breakthrough

Author's Note: Sorry, this chapter is pretty sappy.

* * *

After the three of them had seated themselves around the desk, and after they had all slowly started in on their meal, it became evident that the awkward tensions between Hitsugaya and Ichigo were going to be a serious problem.

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun," Hitsugaya finally said, placing his chopsticks down across the top of his bowl. "I…I shouldn't have acted so disrespectfully to you earlier this afternoon."

"Oh, no, no, it's alright," Ichigo replied hastily with his mouth full of food. "I should be the one apologizing." At this point, he stopped to swallow the bite he had been chewing on. "It was really rude of me to bother you."

"No, it's not alright," Hitsugaya muttered. "Especially since you and Matsumoto went into all the trouble to help me out today."

"It was nothing, taichou," Matsumoto shrugged. "We knew you were having a tough day, so we just decided to do you a small favor. It was Ichigo-kun's idea, though, really."

"N-No, it wasn't! Rangiku-san did just as much as I did!"

"He's lying, taichou!" Matsumoto shrieked happily. "You should have seen him scurrying all over the place and worrying over the smallest details. He really wanted to make you happy, you know."

"Again, Kurosaki-kun, thank you," Hitsugaya muttered shyly.

"There's nothing to thank me for, and, um, please. Call me Ichigo. 'Kurosaki-kun' is way too important for me."

"Thank you for offering, but I do not address people I respect by their first names."

Matsumoto grinned slyly, standing up. "Well," she announced, "I'm done here, and I'm going to tune out for the night. Besides, you two need your time alone together, ne?" She winked mischievously at Ichigo. "G'night, taichou, and see you later, Ichigo-kun."

There was an uncomfortable silence after Matsumoto left, her presence no longer there to be a safety cushion to fall back on if the awkwardness were to become overpowering.

"Um, Toshiro, er, no! I mean Hitsugaya-taichou…About earlier today, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to offend you like I did, I was…"

"There's no need for you to explain," Hitsugaya replied quietly. "It was my own fault for not listening to you finish speaking first."

"No, no, I shouldn't have done that," Ichigo insisted. "I didn't know about what happened between you and that Sojiro guy back then, until Rangiku-san told me…" The words came out before he realized it. Crap. Matsumoto hadn't really been allowed to talk to him about it.

"Did she, now?"

"Er…"

"Don't worry," Hitsugaya murmured quietly, looking downwards at his hands, which were folded in his lap. "I've only asked her not to speak of it to others because it makes the other captains see me as weak and too fragile."

"There's nothing weak about having someone you value," Ichigo replied. "I mean, we're people. We feel things."

Hitsugaya let out a long sigh, placing his hand on the desktop. "I know," he answered. "It's not that I'm ashamed to talk about Kusaka. It's just that it…It's hard to. You have no idea how much it hurts, Kurosaki-kun. I was so happy, and…and then…Well, I don't suppose you want me to repeat the same story again, but I can't help but tell myself every day…He didn't have to die. I could have given up my zanpaku-to and my soul and died in his place. It was my entire fault…If only I hadn't been so pathetic, so selfish, so…so _weak_…"

"It's alright, Toshiro," Ichigo said in what he hoped was a reassuring voice, getting up from his seat and moving around the desk so he was next to Hitsugaya, then putting an arm around his shoulders in an attempt to comfort him. "I'm sure this is what he wanted. Don't worry about it, okay? I bet he'd be really happy to know that you're still alive and well…and…Aw, Toshiro! Don't cry!"

He reached out with his hand, softly stroking the young captain's cheek, dabbing away the solitary tear that had found its way past his dark lashes before putting his arms protectively around his body. "Everything's gonna be alright, okay? Please, Toshiro, please don't be upset about it."

"I-I'm so sorry, Kurosaki-kun…I shouldn't be talking about him…It's just that…it's…" Unable to hold his emotions in any longer, the boy buried his face in Ichigo's robes, his body trembling uncontrollably with silent sobs.

"Shh," Ichigo whispered, holding him close and running a hand through Hitsugaya's silvery-white locks. "It's okay, Toshiro. Just let it all out, alright? Everything's going to be okay, I promise you."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Ichigo couldn't help but note that Hitsugaya hadn't scolded him for addressing him by his first name. That, he hoped, was a good sign.

"He died…He died because of me," Hitsugaya choked. "He allowed himself to be killed to protect me…So that I wouldn't have to suffer…I'm so _pathetic_, Kurosaki-kun. I shouldn't have let him do it, _I_ should be the dead one…"

"Toshiro, it's fine, okay? I know exactly how you feel," Ichigo answered. "My mother, she was one hell of a woman. And you know what happened to her? She was killed by a hollow. She died trying to protect me. I still think about it all the time, and I still feel guilty for it, but you can't say things like you are now, okay? Sojiro died for you, and it would be disrespectful to complain about it, you know what I'm saying?"

"I suppose you're right," Hitsugaya muttered, dabbing the tears away from his face with the back of his sleeve. "I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun, I didn't mean to act like such a spoiled little brat."

"No, what you were doing was perfectly normal. It's not a bad thing to feel guilt, but just try not to dwell on it. Look, it's getting late…You should get some sleep. It wouldn't be good at all if you wake up exhausted tomorrow morning. I'll see you around, okay?"

With that said, Ichigo got up, and walked towards the door.

That was when the impulse hit him.

He turned back around, and without so much as a second thought, he boldly took Hitsugaya's hands in his own, pulling the boy close.

"Kurosaki-kun, what are you doing-"

Hitsugaya had no time to finish his statement, cut off abruptly by Ichigo pressing his lips tightly against his, sealing the gap that had previously separated them.

At that moment, everything seemed to disappear, everything seemed to float away, everything seemed so unearthly and so unreal. Hitsugaya's eyes widened in mute shock as he contemplated the strawberry's sudden and unexpected actions.

The moments moved slowly by before Hitsugaya pulled away, his cheeks tinged pink as he struggled slightly to catch his breath again.

"I…I'm so sorry," Ichigo spluttered, mortified. "I didn't…I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking, and I…I…Oh, my god, I'm just so…Really, Toshiro, I'm sorry about that, and, ah…Uh, I'd better leave now..." Turning away hastily, his face bright red, Ichigo started for the door again, humiliated at his own foolishness.

"W-Wait, Kurosaki-kun!"

The orange-haired teen stopped, his heart pounding. "Yeah…?"

"Um," Hitsugaya mumbled shyly, looking down at the ground and fiddling with the hems of his kimono sleeves. "Well, it's just, um…I'd like to see you again, Kurosaki-kun."

Ichigo's embarrassment dissolved for a moment before a small grin made its way onto his face. "Yeah, you bet, Toshiro. I guess…I guess I'd like to see you again, too."

And with that, he made his leave, feeling very pleased and somewhat light-headed as well.


	6. Dreams

Author's Note: This chapter is mostly flashback. It's sappy too, unfortunately. And sorry if it's confusing.

* * *

_"Hey, Toshiro…What do you think life will be like after we're married?" _

_"I don't know," a young Hitsugaya replied. "We'll decide that when the time comes, Kusaka. And how many times do I have to tell you to call me by my last name?" _

_"Sorry," the thin, purple-haired youth, called Kusaka Sojiro, responded sheepishly, "But in a while, that won't make a difference, 'cause you're going to be 'Kusaka Toshiro' sooner than you think. Call me 'Sojiro,' okay? You're my fiancé. You don't have to be so uptight with me anymore." _

_"I'll call you what I want," Hitsugaya retorted. _

_"Oh, fine. If you say so, Toshiro." As he spoke, Kusaka reached to the smaller boy's hand, intertwining his fingers with Hitsugaya's, who, on one finger, bore a small and plain engagement ring. Both boys were dressed in blue academy uniforms, but by just looking at them and feeling their reiatsu, one could tell that they were no average students. In fact, Hitsugaya and Kusaka were ranked number one and two, respectively, out of the year's entire class, both described as young prodigies. A katana rested across Hitsugaya's back, while Kusaka's was fastened to his waist. _

_The young Hitsugaya didn't look extremely different than he did at the current moment. He had the same silver hair, the same stunning teal eyes. But yet, he had changed so much since then. His eyes had been brighter, they had been much more innocent, and they did not bear the haunted, regretful expression that the Hitsugaya of today did. He was also rather pretty at the time, but years of worry and depression had taken the child-like innocence out of it. And there was the fact that he was smiling. _

_Hitsugaya was sitting against a building, the kendo dojo, to be precise, next to the taller teen with the warm smile. The other students were off and about in the sun, but having ice-type zanpaku-to's, the two of them preferred to stay cool in the shade. _

_As they enjoyed the silence, they were suddenly interrupted as a shinigami appeared in front of them. _

_"Kusaka Sojiro…And Hitsugaya Toshiro?" _

_"Yes, sir," Kusaka answered, pulling his hand away from Hitsugaya's. "That's us." _

_The shinigami's gaze flickered from Kusaka's face to Hitsugaya's, observing his teal eyes, his lips curling in a sneer. "You're a pretty little thing, aren't you? It's a shame, really…" _

_"What do you mean?" Hitsugaya demanded angrily, fully aware of the fact that the shinigami was staring at him like an all-you-can-eat buffet. _

_"Oh, you two will find out soon enough. In the meantime, you guys are to come with me. I have specific instructions to bring you to the office of the first division – The sotaichou would like to see you two." _

_"The sotaichou?" Kusaka glanced worriedly at Hitsugaya before getting up. "What does he want from us?" _

_"You'll have to find out yourselves…But whatever it is, it can't be good," the shinigami scoffed. "The sotaichou never requests to see any students, unless it's about something really bad." _

_Unsure of what was going to happen, the two reluctantly followed the shingami out of the academy grounds and to the first division office, where to sotaichou was waiting. _

_"Yamamoto-sama, I brought them, as you requested." _

_At the front of a room sat an old but strangely intimidating man, with a long white beard pleated in front of his face. Gnarly hands clasped a knobbly wooden cane and beady eyes stared intently out from behind the drooping white brows. _

_"I will make this quick, as I don't really have time to deal with naïve little academy students," the man, the sotaichou, spoke. "What you are about to hear may come as a shock, but you'll have to deal with it one way or another." _

_"Sotaichou, why-?" Hitsugaya started, but was cut off as the old man slammed his stick on the ground with a bang. "Hold your tongue, boy. Allow me to explain without interruption." _

_"I'm sorry, sotaichou," Hitsugaya muttered, looking down. _

_Kusaka glanced at him sympathetically, patting his back reassuringly. _

_"As I was saying," the sotaichou continued, "I'm sure that both of you are very aware of the fact that you both possess the same zanpaku-to, Hyorinmaru. Now, this is strictly against the laws of Soul Society, and it is punishable by death. However, we are not going to have you both executed, as we do not want to throw away a weapon as powerful as Hyorinmaru. Instead…We want you two to fight each other. The winner of the duel will receive Hyorinmaru, and the loser…Well, that won't matter, because the loser doesn't get to live. Go on now, you two. Show us who is worthy of Hyorinmaru." _

_Kusaka was the first to speak. And what he said was simple. _

_"No." _

_There was a deathly silence before the sotaichou raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?" _

_"No," Kusaka repeated. "I won't do it. There's no way you can make me raise my blade against Toshiro." _

_"I refuse as well, sotaichou," Hitsugaya added, though his voice wavered fearfully as he did so. _

_The sotaichou's eyes narrowed. "And why is that?" _

_There was another silence. _

_Muttering impatiently, the sotaichou beckoned to Hitsugaya. "You, boy. Come here." _

_Hesitantly, Hitsugaya looked from Kusaka, and then to the sotaichou, before doing as told and stepping towards the old man. _

_No sooner had he come to a stop in front of him, the sotaichou reached out quickly, seizing Hitsugaya's wrist and bringing his hand up to see. The old man's eyes narrowed as they caught sight of the engagement ring that rested on one of the boy's slender fingers. _

_"I see. This is how it is…" _

_With a snort of disgust, the sotaichou snatched the unadorned ring from his finger, throwing it aside like a mere piece of trash. And then, without warning, he suddenly reached up again and struck Hitsugaya viciously across the face, sending him sprawling to the floor in an undignified heap. _

_"Toshiro!" In an instant, Kusaka was at his side, putting his arms protectively around the boy, kneeling next to him as Hitsugaya shamefully brought himself to his knees. _

_"You foolish little boy," the sotaichou barked, pointing a gnarled finger accusingly at him. "You are only a child! What business of yours is marriage!?" _

_"Sotaichou, forgive him," Kusaka answered, "He's mature enough to understand-" _

_"Silence, boy! I am getting impatient. The two of you will either fight now, or I will have both of you put to death." _

_Kusaka bit his lip, looking at Hitsugaya, until he finally made up his mind. _

_He reached around Hitsugaya's back, pulling the boy's sword out of its sheath, before reaching down to his hands and uncurling his fingers, recurling them tightly around the katana's hilt. _

_"K-Kusaka…What are you…" _

_"It's alright, Toshiro," the taller youth answered quietly, still holding Hitsugaya's hands. _

_Then, guiding the white-haired boy's hands with his own, he slammed the blade through his own stomach. _

_There was the sickening sound of the blade tearing through flesh, and then Hitsugaya's eyes widened in horror and shock as he realized what had just happened, flecks of Kusaka's blood dotting his face. _

_The raven-haired youth's hands dropped limply to his sides, leaving only Hitsugaya's to hold the katana, whose blade had gone clean through Kusaka's midsection. _

_"N-No…Kusaka…Why…?" _

_"I love you, Toshiro," Kusaka managed to speak, before coughing a mouthful of blood onto the floor. "You've got to…You've got to stay alive, and you've got to move on without me…Go on and become a taichou, please…Do it for me, Toshiro…" _

_"K-Kusaka!" Hitsugaya's eyes were wide with panic, tears streaming down his face as he pulled the blade out, throwing the blood-stained katana to the floor. He flung his arms around the form of his dying fiancé, screaming hysterically. _

_"Please, Kusaka! Please, stay with me, don't…I'm begging you, please don't leave…" _

_"I'm sorry, Toshiro. I really wanted…I wanted to make you happy for the rest of your life…But this…This is as far as I can go for you. Goodbye." _

_"Take the wretch away," the sotaichou ordered coldly. "If he isn't dead within an hour, then you know what to do with him." _

_At his words, several shinigami attendants hurried to do as they were told. One grabbed Hitsugaya's wrists, jerking him roughly away from Kusaka, pinning his arms behind his back as he struggled wildly, while the others pulled Kusaka to his feet and escorted him away, a trail of blood marking their path. _

_"No!" Hitsugaya screamed pleadingly, trying to jerk free. "Let me go! Please! Kusaka! Sojiro…no, not Sojiro, please… Please don't hurt him, I beg of you…" _

_But it was too late. They had already disappeared. _

_The shinigami restraining Hitsugaya released him, and sobbing, the boy crumpled helplessly to the floor, begging with choked pleas for the sotaichou to have mercy, receiving nothing more than an apprehensive glare in return…_

_

* * *

_

Ichigo's eyes shot open.

He sat up abruptly, his heart pounding at the dream he had just had.

Was that really how it had happened…?

But why, the orange-haired boy wondered. Why had such a dream been sent to him, of all people?


	7. Assignment

Author's Note: Hope you appreciated my last three-chapter update. I was supposed to be studying for a Chemistry exam...but I didn't. Needless to say, I failed it! Yay! But at least you guys got your updates, yeah?

* * *

His heart still pounding furiously, Ichigo got to his feet, the dream he had just had still replaying itself over and over in his mind in a disturbing fashion. 

He had been sleeping on a couch in the 6th division office, an arrangement that had been reached due to Renji and Rukia's hours of begging in order to convince Byakuya to allow the strawberry to lodge there for his stay in Soul Society.

As he left the office, he headed off promptly to the tenth division barracks, deciding he needed to talk to Hitsugaya about his dream and see how much of it was true and how much of it wasn't. Had it been just a random dream, or had it really meant something? At any rate, Hitsugaya would be the only one who would be able to confirm his doubts.

Not too long after his departure, he arrived at his destination, hurrying towards the main office and seizing the handle of the sliding door, only to find it was locked.

"Damn," he muttered. He gave it another hard jerk. Still nothing.

"Open up, you stupid, stupid, stupid, shitty little door," Ichigo growled, jerking furiously at the handle, hopping up and down as he did so in hopes of dislodging the lock that was impeding his progress.

By now, several tenth division shinigami on their daily rounds had stopped to watch and laugh at him from behind his back. He looked _really_ stupid, and resembled something like an orange-haired toad who had just been lit on fire.

"Oi, Toshiro!" Ichigo roared, banging unceremoniously on the door with his fists. "I had a dream about you last night! And it was an indecent dream, too!"

Hmm, had the wording come out right?

The tenth division shinigami who had been watching exchanged confused and horrified looks. Who the hell was this crazy orange-haired bastard and why was he screeching at their taichou and blathering about dreaming indecent dreams involving him?

And that was when Ichigo realized that he should have chosen a different adjective to describe that stupid dream.

"You pervert! What the hell's your problem!?"

"Stay away from our taichou, you hear me!?"

"Pedophile! You're the worst!"

"Why're you trying to get in his office!? If you rape him, we'll kill you!"

"You lecher! Go back to your own division!"

As the angry mob condensed around him, brandishing their katanas menacingly, Ichigo began to wave his hands frantically in a pathetic attempt to calm them down, backing away, his backside pressed against the door.

"H-Hang on, you guys!" he spluttered in horror. "It's not what it sounds like! I didn't mean to say that-"

At that moment the door swung open, sending Ichigo plummeting backwards.

"Oi! The hell was that for…Ah, I mean…Hi, Rangiku-san."

"Geez, Ichigo-kun," Matsumoto whined, standing in the now-open doorway. "Why do you yell so loudly? I was having such a nice sleep, and you had to go and wake me up."

"Sorry, but I really need to see your taichou. _Now_."

"You do? Well then, you've got to come back later, 'cause he's not here at the moment He's at the taichou's meeting right now."

"Damn," Ichigo muttered under his breath. "Then I'll wait out here."

"Suit yourself," Matsumoto shrugged, "But I'm staying inside. It's way too hot out there, and I'm going to close the door, too. All of taichou's leftover cold reiatsu is leaking out, and I don't want to roast to death." With that, she pulled the door shut.

Which left Ichigo to turn around slowly and once again face the mob of tenth division shinigami. All of whom looked rather pissed.

"Uh…" Ichigo spoke hopefully. "So, um…What's up, guys?"

Oh, shit. He was in trouble now.

* * *

"That is all. The meeting is now dismissed." 

After permission from the sotaichou had been granted for departure, the captains slowly began to file out of the first division office, one by one.

As Hitsugaya headed towards the door, he was suddenly stopped by Yamamoto calling his name.

"Hitsugaya-taichou, if you would stay for a moment."

The boy froze, hesitating for a moment before turning around. "Hai, sotaichou."

"That's a good boy," Yamamoto approved as Hitsugaya approached him. "Now, there is something very important I must speak to you about, so listen closely."

Hitsugaya nodded, wondering what in the world it was that the sotaichou needed to talk to him about. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

"Now then, Hitsugaya-taichou. Subordinates of mine have noticed and informed me that you've become quite close to Kurosaki Ichigo, the substitute shinigami. Is that true?"

"Hardly, sotaichou."

"I see. Anyways, there is a special task that I have for you to complete regarding the young man. I am sure that you are aware of the fact that the boy is not only a substitute shingami, but he also possesses an… inner hollow?"

"Yes, I've heard of that."

"Good. Anyways, we've received information stating that Kurosaki Ichigo has been training with the Vizard lately. He seems to be quite attached to that group, which has drawn suspicion that he may stay with them permanently and betray us. I need you to do some investigating, Hitsugaya-taichou, and find out the extent of his hollow's powers and whether or not it is a threat, as well as if he plans on maintaining alliance with the Vizard."

"And if the results prove that he is indeed what you call…a threat?"

"Then we will have to take action, of course, and carry out the necessary procedures to eliminate him."

Hitsugaya's eyes widened slightly, and he fearfully took a step back. "I-I'm sorry, sotaichou," he stammered, "But I can't carry this mission out."

Yamamoto raised an eyebrow. "You seem to misunderstand, Hitsugaya-taichou. This is not a request. It is an _order_, and you will _obey_ my orders."

"Sotaichou, please. You can't make me go behind his back like that-"

"What does he mean to you, may I ask?"

Hitsugaya hesitated before muttering, "N-Nothing."

"Then why should you hesitate? It shouldn't matter to you. After all, your foolishness and disobedience has already led to the death of someone precious to you in the past. This mission shouldn't make a difference, especially since you claim the enemy means 'nothing' to you."

The white-haired boy's eyes widened again. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out, until he finally managed to choke out, "He's not an 'enemy.' Why must you speak of him like he is? Sotaichou…I beg of you, please don't make me do this…"

"It's just as I thought," Yamamoto scoffed. "You really _are_ still a child, aren't you? I am beginning to think you are unfit to serve as a captain of the Gotei 13, especially since you refuse to follow a simple order. Refusal, I'm afraid, will mark _you_ as a traitor as well if we find evidence to support our theory of the Kurosaki boy's intentions. I will tell you one more time, Hitsugaya-taichou. Declining this mission is not an option. Do you understand?"

Hitsugaya looked down shamefully before slowly nodding and quietly replying.

"Hai, sotaichou."

"Very good. I will let you know when I will be expecting a report from you later this week. For nows, I want you to concentrate on this mission. Failure is unacceptable, and don't even _think_ about trying anything funny. I will have subordinates monitoring your every move. If I am to receive notice that you are not doing your job, you will be arrested and punished."

"I…I understand."

"Then you are dismissed."


	8. The Search Begins

Author's Note: If I'm super bored some days, you guys can expect multiple-chapter updates every now and then, but they probably won't exceed three at a time. And thanks to all of you who still have the patience to be reviewing! I went back and read the whole story so far over again, and was thinking to myself, "Wow...This is cheesy." So thanks to all of you guys, and I have no idea how you've managed to get this far without ranting at me for my pathetic attempts and making plot twists.

* * *

As Hitsugaya returned to the tenth division, attempting to ignore the oppressive heat, he suddenly became aware of a commotion coming from the area near his office. 

Raising an eyebrow, he stepped around a building, entering the tenth division's territory and approaching his office. Upon reaching his destination, he discovered Ichigo on the ground, screeching in terror and attempting to shield his head as a group of subordinates yelled at him and whacked him furiously with the flat sides of their blades.

"What's going on?" the young captain demanded, motioning for his subordinates to lay down their swords before crossing his arms over his chest in an irritated fashion. "What is the meaning of this?"

Ichigo had never been happier to see him.

"This guy was trying to get into your office," one of the shinigami explained. "He was screaming your name and saying that he had been dreaming about you…"

"I-I saw him!" Ichigo yelled, cutting the shinigami off as he spoke. "I saw him, Toshiro, I saw Sojiro and you in my dreams…"

"Kurosaki-kun, what on earth are you blathering about?"

"I _saw_ him die."

Hitsugaya stopped abruptly, unfolding his arms. There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. "What…What happened in your dream?"

"The two of you, you were both in the first division office. It was something about your zanpaku-to's, I wasn't completely sure of what was going on…But then he took your katana and stabbed himself through the stomach, and then they took him away, and then…and then…"

"That's enough."

"I'm sorry…"

The expression on Hitsugaya's face was more than enough to tell Ichigo that everything in his dream had actually happened in the past.

"Toshiro, are you alright?"

"Y-Yes. I'm fine. If there's nothing more you need to say to me, then you are excused."

Getting to his feet and dusting off his robes, Ichigo looked back up at Hitsugaya. There was something, though he didn't know quite what it was, that was causing him to worry about the boy. He just seemed too preoccupied with something else. "Um, we'll see each other again…right, Toshiro?"

At these words, Hitsugaya stopped, before turning around to face Ichigo, a hurt expression on his face. "Actually, Kurosaki-kun," he answered quietly, "I think it's best if we didn't."

Ichigo froze.

"…What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't really explain. Let me just tell you this, Kurosaki-kun. From this moment forward, every second you spend with me will put your life in danger. Please don't make me suffer the same guilt twice."

"Toshiro, I don't understand, why…?" His voice trailed off as Hitsugaya simply turned away, disappearing into his office moments later.

_"Maybe Abarai-san was right…Eh, King?" _

Ichigo's eyes dilated for a moment as he heard the familiar voice inside his head, and what seemed to be a second presence in his mentality.

"Freakin' Hichigo. Shut up," he growled. "I'm sure he's got a good reason."

His hollow's mocking laughter echoed throughout his mind, sending chills down his spine. _"It'd be a shame to lose such a pretty little creature, wouldn't it? I'll tell you what, King…Let me out of here. If spending time with him is indeed 'dangerous,' then I'll get rid of it all." _

"No way. I'll handle it by myself. Shut up and…"

_"Ah, King, don't be selfish. I'm the reason why you're so powerful. This is your chance to thank me. Let me out." _

"What do you want with Toshiro?" Ichigo demanded angrily.

_"Don't tell me that I'm the only one who's noticed his reiatsu by now. I imagine that you're still seeking power, King, and I'm more than positive that the boy is just what you need to give your own reiatsu a good boost." _

"What the hell!? I'm not going to let you _eat_ him, if that's what you're thinking!"

_"Oh, for the love of all things good, just let me out. I'm bored."_

"No! If you're bored, then go hang out with Zangetsu! You guys can go spar or something or whatever it is that you do when I'm not fighting! Hold on, you're not manly enough to spar! How's about a nice game of tiddlywinks, eh!?"

_"Fine, King, I'll shut up for nows…But you'll have to let me out sooner or later, and you know it…" _

With another peal of sinister laughter, the hollow's presence slowly faded from Ichigo's mind.

Good timing, too. Ichigo had made up his mind that there was something very important he had to do. And it involved snooping around in Soul Society's archives.

* * *

"Hmm...Kusaka Sojiro, Kusaka Sojiro..." 

After having bribed the key to Soul Society's archives from Ukitake (with the little white lie he had made, stating that the research he was about to conduct was to find the cure for lung cancer), Ichigo had found himself in the massive room with no idea where to start.

He supposed searching the records first would be a good idea, and now, he was looking through a long list of names of all the shinigami that had ever existed and/or still do. Unfortunately, that was one big-ass list, and he wasn't having much luck.

He had already spent hours inside, and not a single file he had found contained anything relevant at all to "Kusaka Sojiro," and he had double-checked as well.

He had gone through academy rosters, obituaries, registration forms...

And that was when he found it.

A large and very heavy book, the cover declaring it as an index containing records of all the zanpaku-to of Soul Society.

With a grunt of effort, Ichigo lifted the heavy volume from its precarious perch on a shelf that looked as if it would collapse at any second. He placed it on the ground, brushing the dust off of its cover before flipping it open.

"Damn," he grumbled. "This is going to take a while." Nevertheless, he went quickly through the pages, his eyes on the lookout for the magic word: Hyorinmaru.

After what seemed like at least an hour of flipping and scanning and reading and searching, he finally came across a page that bore the kanji characters that spelled out the name of the most powerful ice-type zanpaku-to in all of Soul Society. Placing his finger on the words, and then moving it downwards, he wasn't too surprised to see his finger land on the name "Hitsugaya Toshiro." His eyes moved downward, with a frown.

The words "Second shinigami wielder" were written in miniscule print at the bottom, with an arrow indicating information about that would be on the next page. He flipped the page, and instead found an entirely different page with an entirely different zanpaku-to's information on it. That was when he noticed a strip of tattered paper wedged in the book's binding. The second page meant for information on Hyorinmaru's second wielder had been there at some point, but it had been torn out and disposed of.

Which, in short, meant, that Soul Society had gotten rid of all his records.

Everything about "Kusaka Sojiro" had been destroyed, save his gravesite. No wonder his name could not be found on any other source.

So according to Soul Society's government, he had never even existed.

"Why'd they do that?" Ichigo frowned. "Maybe they're trying to cover something up…"

Putting the book back where he had found it and rising to his feet, Ichigo moved hurriedly towards an adjacent room, which he found was locked, and on the door were the words, "Forbidden Access."

"Aha!" Ichigo thought to himself. "A _secret_ room, eh? I bet only Central 46 is allowed inside to access the records in there. So there's _got_ to be something about that Sojiro dude in there!"

He placed a hand on the lock, examining it. It wasn't very strongly reinforced, so he assumed that no one went in there anyway. All he had to do was give the lock a good burst of reiatsu, and the door swung open to let him in.

He hurried inside, noting that it was unusually dark and musty in there.

But he couldn't waste time complaining about it, he had work to do, and he had to do it fast before someone came in and discovered him snooping about.


	9. Findings

Author's Notes: There are a couple of turning points in this chapter, so you'd better read it all and not miss any of it! Though my 'shocking' twists may have been much too predictable. I certainly think they are.

Also, I mentioned that this fic is also MatsuGin. I don't know if I'll have time to squeeze that in very much, though, but there will be some implications.

* * *

After another few minutes of searching, Ichigo came across a cabinet containing a vast amount of folders. The cabinet, too, had a lock on it, so he assumed what was inside must be quite "secret." Again, he was able to penetrate the lock and pull it open. 

He began rifling through the file folders it contained, realizing soon enough that it was a cabinet containing files of the deceased. Good, that would narrow his search down by quite a lot.

After about ten minutes of searching, he finally found what he was looking for.

"Here you are!" the strawberry whispered to himself in triumph as he pulled out a folder with the name 'Kusaka Sojiro' on it.

He instantly flipped it open, finding nothing inside, save a small photograph and several notes. He picked up the faded photograph, observing it for a moment. "Huh," he mused, "So _that's_ Toshiro's old boyfriend." Putting the photograph back into the folder, he then moved onto the small notes.

As he scanned each letter, his eyes widened.

"What the hell…"

After he had finished reading the notes, he put them back into the folder and closed it, feeling sick to his stomach. He had discovered several things:

One. Kusaka Sojiro had not been killed because of his zanpaku-to.

Two. Such a law that stated that two shinigami could not share the same zanpaku-to had ever existed.

Three. His death had been deliberate, and the whole line of events that had happened in the first division office had only been used as an excuse to kill him with a "legal" reason.

Four. The whole thing had been a plot to have either him or Hitsugaya put to death.

Five. And the reason why the government decided he had to be assassinated was this: They had heard through their intelligence agencies that after the two were married, Kusaka and Hitsugaya had not intended on continuing their careers as shinigami. Of course, that would mean that they would lose Hyorinmaru as a weapon, so they would have to resort to drastic measures to prevent the marriage. This meant that they would have to come up with something to facilitate the legal execution of one of them (if one of them didn't kill the other first), which would explain the fake laws they had came up with.

In other words, Hitsugaya had been used by them for the benefits that Hyorinmaru brought on the battlefield, and Kusaka had died so that they would be able to manipulate Hitsugaya (and Hyorinmaru) into staying with the Gotei 13 without interference.

This meant that the whole thing had only been a plot to be able to keep Hyorinmaru's power within the Gotei 13.

And all of Kusaka's publicly accessible records had been destroyed in order to prevent legal complications from arising if someone was to uncover their conspiracy.

Which, of course, Ichigo had just done.

"I've got to tell Toshiro," he murmured to himself, "And then I'm going straight to the sotaichou and I'll get to the bottom of this."

As he got ready to leave, he suddenly heard footsteps nearby.

"Shit," he muttered, hurriedly stuffing the notes into his robes, dropping the folder to the floor, ducking out of the room and hurrying away, attempting to conceal his reiatsu in the process.

* * *

"You wanted to see me, sotaichou?" 

"Yes. Have a seat, Hitsugaya-taichou."

With a sigh, Hitsugaya seated himself in front of the sotaichou's desk. Earlier in the day, he had been out on his daily rounds when a hell butterfly had delivered notice to him that his immediate presence was required in the first division office.

"First of all," Yamamoto began, folding his gnarled hands on the desktop, "How has your little assignment been coming along?"

"I haven't seen Kurosaki-kun around recently," Hitsugaya lied.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, sotaichou."

Yamamoto wrinkled his brow, observing Hitsugaya's face intently as if he could see right into his mind. "I see," he finally said. "But don't forget, boy, my subordinates are watching you."

"I am aware of that, sir."

"I advise you to finish your assignment quickly. I am not an exceptionally patient man, and I would be most displeased if you were to keep me waiting."

"Yes, sir."

"And there's something else we need to speak about," Yamamoto added, seeming to glare unpleasantly at Hitsugaya from under his bushy white brows.

"I'm listening," Hitsugaya mumbled.

"Yesterday we discovered that someone had gotten into our archives," he continued. "Now, we know for a fact that whoever got their hands on the keys received them from Ukitake-taichou, but he has refused to say who it was."

"Erm, alright." By this point, the child prodigy was wondering why the hell he was being told this. It wasn't like it was any of his business or he had been involved or something like that, anyway.

"And do you know whose files the perpetrator was looking at?"

"No, sir."

"They were looking at the files of Kusaka Sojiro."

Hitsugaya looked up abruptly, and expression of shock running through his teal eyes as he glanced at the sotaichou.

"H-How do you know?"

"Whoever it was carelessly left the folder on the floor, but they made off with the content inside the file. Now, the files were located in a forbidden room, and I'm sure you know that entering that room without permission is punishable by law, yes?"

"Yes, I know that," Hitsugaya answered quietly, looking down into his lap.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you," Yamamoto ordered, which was enough to bring the young captain's attention back up to his face. "What exactly are you trying to do, Hitsugaya Toshiro? I know you're up to something."

"Are you accusing me of breaking into the archives?" Hitsugaya demanded indignantly.

"Precisely. Who else would be searching for files on Kusaka Sojiro?"

"I don't know! Sotaichou, I know this is too bold of me to say, but I find it extremely unreasonable of you to be suspecting me of a crime I did _not_ commit, especially since you have no _proof_."

"The fact that they were Kusaka's files is proof enough for me."

"I'm telling you," Hitsugaya snapped, standing up angrily, slamming his hands on the desktop. "_I did not do it_."

"I will not permit you to speak to me in such a disrespectful tone!" Yamamoto barked. "Sit back down boy, and remember your place. You are _nothing_ without the Gotei 13, and this is how you show your gratitude!?"

Hitsugaya faltered for a moment, before he shamefully sat back down. "I'm sorry, sotaichou," he muttered.

"You are either very lucky, or very _unlucky_, boy," Yamamoto hissed. "Although you deny involvement in yesterday's break-in, that doesn't mean that I won't be keeping a very close eye on you from now on, and that I won't suspect you, because I most certainly do. In fact, I would have you arrested right here and now, but I need you to complete your little mission first. Do a good job on it, and I will clear you of all charges. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes, sotaichou."

"Then you are excused."

Hitsugaya hastily got to his feet and hurried out of the office, wondering who it was that had been rooting through the archives in search of Kusaka's files, and why they had done it. What had they been looking for?

As he approached the tenth division's office, he decided he would ask Matsumoto about it, perhaps she knew what was going on.

Before he could reach his office, though, his path was suddenly blocked by someone else, who had practically appeared out of nowhere.

Hitsugaya stopped abruptly, looking up, a frown coming over his features. "Kurosaki-kun? I believe I've already warned you to stay away from me."

"Y-Yeah," an out-of-breath Ichigo panted, who had apparently been running around for quite some time now. "I've been looking all over the place for you, 'cause I've got something I have to tell you."

"What is it? I don't-"

"It's about Sojiro."

Hitsugaya froze, his eyes narrowing. "So _you're_ the one who stole his files. What are you playing at, Kurosaki-kun? What do you want with those files?"

"I'll explain everything…in a sec…" Ichigo answered, breathing heavily. "I'm just so…so exhausted right now…"

_"Hey, King…Let me out. I'll regain the energy you lost running around all day." _

"Go away," Ichigo muttered through gritted teeth. "I'm not gonna…"

Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed again. "Kurosaki-kun, who exactly are you talking to?"

_"Ha! Then if you won't let me out, I'll let myself out." _

"No! What the hell are you…?"

Shit, Ichigo thought, his mind racing. His hollow must have reacted to Hitsugaya's reiatsu, and he was so out of energy that right now, it would be hard to maintain control over his own body, as long as Hichigo was determined to get out.

"Kurosaki-kun, I asked you a question-"

"T-Toshiro! Get out of here! Run!"

"What are you…?" Hitsugaya's voice trailed off as he felt Ichigo's reiatsu spiking dangerously. There was something about it that sent a shiver down his spine, his reiatsu seemed to be mixed with another strange, alien energy. His eyes widened in quiet shock. He knew this type of reiatsu, it was unmistakenable.

A hollow's reiatsu.


	10. Hollowed Out

Author's Note: I really enjoy reading all of your comments. I think I'll start posting my favorite comment for each installment from now on, but I'll leave the poster-name out, just in case they want a little confidentiality.

Alright, featured comment for Chapter 9: "Oops. Hitsugaya's screwed..."

* * *

The new reiatsu was overpowering, and it seemed to be suppressing and encroaching over Ichigo's. The spiritual pressure was terrifying, and it was enough to cause Hitsugaya to have to struggle to stand upright. 

"Kurosaki-kun, what's happening to you…?"

He froze. He could no longer feel Ichigo's reiatsu, only the suffocating energy of the hollow. And that was how he knew that something was terribly, terribly wrong.

As Ichigo looked up, Hitsugaya's heart seemed to stop in his chest. No, he was no longer Ichigo, he was someone, or something else. A yellow-eyed monster, leering at him with an unpleasant grin, emitting reiatsu oozing with bloodlust.

Hitsugaya took a step back, his hand instantly jumping to the hilt of Hyorinmaru.

Ichigo, or rather, Ichigo's hollow, stepped forward, observing the boy with his eerie, malicious eyes.

"Hey, shinigami…You've got quite an impressive amount of reiatsu there."

"Stay away from me," Hitsugaya demanded, unsheathing Hyorinmaru, his hands gripping the katana so tightly that his knuckles turned into a shade of white that rivaled his hair.

The hollow took a step forward, and instinctively, Hitsugaya stepped back again.

"Go ahead, shinigami. Cut me."

Hitsugaya hesitated, his fingers curled tightly around his katana. He just couldn't bring himself to move at all, let alone attack the hollow that faced him.

"How cute...You don't have the heart to hurt King's body, do you?"

"Who are you, and what do you want with me?" Hitsugaya growled.

"That's none of your business, little shinigami, but I'll tell you something. King's been helping you out an awful lot lately, so why don't you return the favor?"

"What are you talking about-"

There was a flash of movement, and before Hitsugaya could shunpo to safety, let alone react, he suddenly found himself being slammed against the side of the alley wall, hard. White dots swam in the young captain's vision as his surroundings blurred, before he regained orientation, only to discover that he could not move. The hollow had pinned him to the wall by his wrists, which also prevented him from using Hyorinmaru to his defense, as his grip was so tight that it was enough to form bruises on the boy's delicate skin.

"L-Let go of me, you filthy hollow!" the prodigy spat, struggling wildly against his captor.

"I don't think I will. You've got so much reiatsu, little boy. Sharing is caring, I want it, and you will give it to me, whether you like it or not."

A shudder ran down Hitsugaya's spine, which was pressed painfully against the wall. The hollow was so close to him that he could literally feel its hot breath against his face and neck.

"It's a shame to be killing such a young shinigami such as you," the hollow shrugged nonchalantly, "And King's sure to be upset. You know, he's taken quite a liking to you...But he'll appreciate your reiatsu much more than your pretty little face once in the long run I've finished devouring you."

_No._

_He couldn't let this happen._

_Why wasn't he doing anything? Why was he watching?_

_He had to force the hollow back in, or Hitsugaya would..._

Hitsugaya's eyes widened as the hollow suddenly released him, lurching to the side whilst letting out an unearthly shriek that nearly shattered the boy's eardrums. Staggering backwards, the hollow shrieked again, and Hitsugaya could evidently feel a sharp fluctiation in its reiatsu.

He could feel Ichigo's reiatsu again.

The hollow seemed to be trying to fight something back, clawing at its head as its reiatsu continued to spike violently.

And then it went still, its arms dropping limply to its sides.

There was a pause.

Hesitantly, Hitsugaya took a small step forward. Ichigo, or his hollow, or whoever had taken back over looked up slowly, and Hitsugaya was relieved to find that normal chocolate color had returned to the strawberry's eyes, and he could no longer feel the hollow's opressive reiatsu in the immediate area.

Panting heavily, Ichigo unsteadily took a step towards Hitsugaya.

"Kurosaki-kun...?"

"Toshiro," Ichigo rasped, "Are you...Are you hurt? What did he do to you?"

"I'm fine."

"No," Ichigo answered, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. "You're not fine...Your wrists..." He reached out and gently took the tenth division captain's hands, gently running his fingers over the dark bruises that blemished his slender wrists.

"These are nothing," Hitsugaya insisted, quickly pulling his hands away. "Like I said, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, Kurosaki-kun, these can be healed quickly with a simple kido spell."

"I'm so sorry," the strawberry apologized, clearly ashamed. "If I could control it better, then I...I wouldn't have hurt you."

"It wasn't your fault. Like I said, please don't worry-"

Hitsugaya stopped in midsentence, hearing a series of footsteps from behind him.

"Well done, Hitsugaya-taichou."

The child prodigy froze, his heart stopping as he turned to see Yamamoto, who was flanked on either side by a group of his subordinates.

The sotaichou raised a gnarled finger to point at Ichigo, who looked rather confused.

"Arrest him."

Ichigo's confused expression deepened, turning into one of shock as he was surrounded on all sides by shinigami from the first division, who pinned his arms behind his back, restricting his movement, a katana blade held threateningly to his throat.

"Wh-What did I do!?" Ichigo spluttered, looking at Hitsugaya for explanation. "Toshiro, what's going on...?"

"Allow me to explain, Kurosaki Ichigo," Yamamoto interuppted. "We had Hitsugaya-taichou do a little investigating on you to assess the danger of your inner hollow. This proves to us that _you_ are indeed a threat."

Ichigo's eyes widened as he glanced back to Hitsugaya, the reality of it striking him head-on.

"Toshiro...you..."

"I-I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun, I didn't-"

"This whole time," Ichigo snarled through gritted teeth, glaring hatefully at Hitsugaya, "You've been...You've just been _using_ me!?"

"It's not like that!" Hitsugaya protested. "I didn't have a choice. I'm sorry, I..."

"I can't believe you," he choked out, straining against his restraints. "Everything you've said to me...They were all lies, weren't they!? 'I'd like to see you again' my ass! Sure, you wanted to see me again! So you could get me thrown into prison! Is that what you wanted!? Are you happy now, huh, Toshiro!?"

"It seems you are underestimating the seriousness of this all," Yamamoto cut in, turning to Ichigo. "You are not just going to be 'thrown in prison,' Kurosaki Ichigo. I'm afraid you'll have to be executed as well in order to protect the people of Soul Society."

"Sotaichou, please!" Hitsugaya implored, kneeling on the ground at Yamamoto's feet. "Sotaichou, I'm begging you, please...You can't execute him..." It was a humiliating position to be in. All he had to do was stick out his tongue and he'd be literally licking the old man's feet, but now was not the time to be picky.

Yamamoto looked down at the boy, his brows crinkling in disgust. "I'm beginning to doubt that you understand your place, Hitsugaya-taichou. First, you've broken into the archives and stolen Kusaka Sojiro's files, and now, of all times, when it is your one chance to redeem yourself, you want to change your mind?"

"Sotaichou, I..."

"He didn't steal them!" Ichigo snapped. "It was me."

Yamamoto's eyes narrowed as he turned back to Ichigo. "Excuse me?"

"N-No, sotaichou," Hitsugaya stammered frantically, realizing that Ichigo was about to get himself into deeper trouble than he already was. "It's not his fault, I forced him to..."

"You _what_?" Yamamoto snarled. "So you're admitting you _did_ commit the crime that you previously denied involvement in?"

Hitsugaya swallowed, looking down at the floor, before answering quietly. "Yes, sir."

"You...You fool!" Yamamoto roared. "Get to your feet, boy!"

Hastily, Hitsugaya got back to his feet, keeping his eyes glued to the floor, too ashamed and too frightened for Ichigo's safety to speak.

"Were you involved in the break-in or not!?"

"I...I was."

"You are nothing but a flithy, lying little brat," Yamamoto hissed in a dangerous voice. "Why are you defending Kurosaki? Answer me!"

Hitsugaya said nothing.

This seemed to only enrage the sotaichou even further.

Without warning, Yamamoto suddenly slapped Hitsugaya across the face with all his strength. The impact was enough to knock the boy off balance and sprawling to the floor at Ichigo's feet.

Somehow, Ichigo thought, there was something painfully familiar about this.

"Don't _touch_ him!" The strawberry screamed angrily, struggling viciously against the group of shinigami restraining him, but to no avail. "Don't you _dare _touch him! Lay one finger on Toshiro again, and I'll kill you!"

"Silence!" Yamamoto ordered, slamming his walking-stick into the ground with a sharp bang. "You will learn to hold your tongue, Kurosaki Ichigo. You are in no position to speak out against me on Hitsugaya-taichou's behalf."

"You conceited, senile old-"

"Ichigo, please," Hitsugaya implored quietly as he slowly brought himself to his knees, his cheek still burning with pain from where Yamamoto had slapped him. "Don't try to contradict him."

The strawberry seemed a little surprised at this. It was the first time he had ever heard the young captain address him by his given name, as opposed to "Kurosaki-kun."

"Toshiro…"

Before Ichigo could utter another word, Yamamoto moved forward, seizing a fistful of Hitsugaya's snowy locks and jerking him to his feet, taking hold of the boy's haori, stripping it from his shoulders with a single movement, casting the fabric aside.

"You no longer deserve to wear the symbol of the tenth division on your back," the sotaichou hissed. "I am removing you from your commanding position. Not only do you deliberately lie to me, but you have also evidently taken side with Kurosaki Ichigo. I warned you what would happen if you were to cross sides."

With that said, he threw the boy back to the floor in disgust. "Arrest this little wretch as well," he ordered, turning to his subordinates. "And then take both of these creatures out of my sight. Seal their reiatsu, confiscate their zanpaku-to, and lock them away. I will consult the Central 46 as to what is to be done next."

"Hai, sotaichou!"


	11. Double Shock

Author's Note: Yay, an update! I'm sorry, I tried to make a plot twist here, but I think I failed...And, to make up for the lack of update, I'll make this chapter a little longer. There's a lot of action in this chapter, so read carefully.

Featured Comment: "DUN DUN DUN! zomg! i was excited at first. i thought Hichi was gunna rape Hitsu! sigh. guess not."

(Sorry to disappoint you, but I never write M-rated material without the consent/request of at least five readers first. Though I am aware of the fact that I do write a lot of fluff and a lot of suggestive things.)

* * *

"I warned you, didn't I?"

Ichigo looked up from his position from inside the cell he had been confined to. Without permission from the Central 46, however, the sotaichou did not have the authority to actually decide whether or not he actually should be excecuted. However, his reiatsu had been somehow sealed, and Zangetsu had been taken away. It had already been about two weeks or so since he had been arrested.

"Renji?"

"Like I said, Ichigo, I warned you about what would happen if you trusted Hitsugaya-taichou. You did exactly what I told you not to, and now, look at where you are," the redhead sighed. "Don't you see? He was using you. That's all he does to everyone, acts all buddy-buddy, and then, bam. You end up like shit, and he gets credit from the sotaichou for it."

"That's not true."

Renji blinked. "Oh, come on, strawberry, get a grip. It's already happened, and you're trying to deny it?"

"He didn't have a choice," Ichigo shot back angrily. "And, if you must know, Renji, he's been locked up, too. And you want to know why?"

"No, I _don't_ want to know why, I want you to get a hold of yourself and-"

"It's because he was defending me!" Ichigo retorted in a voice that was almost a yell.

Renji blinked.

"If you insist, but let's go. The Central 46 determined that it'd be a stupid idea to have you executed. I mean, we need all the help we can get for fighting the Arrancar, and throwing you away would be about as smart as holding an umbrella and jumping off a cliff in hopes of flying. C'mon, the sotaichou gave me permission to get you out of here, and then we'll go get your zanpaku-to back."

Blinking in surprise, Ichigo stood up as Renji swung the cell's door open.

"What about Toshiro?"

Renji looked a bit surprised at this. "You mean, they haven't told you yet?"

"Told me what?"

"Told you what they did with him."

"No," Ichigo answered suspiciously, "What do you mean? What have they done with Toshiro?"

"Actually," Renji muttered, looking away, "I think it'd be best if I didn't tell you. I don't want you getting all upset over him and stuff, I mean, if I were you, I'd be upset...It _is_ a shame, but hey, he comitted a crime, and the Central 46 determined it would be the best thing to do for the well-being of Soul Society..."

"Cut the shit!" Ichigo snapped, his voice rising. "Where is he!?"

"He, um...Well, you see..."

"Renji! Tell me what's happened to him. Now."

The redhead could most evidently feel Ichigo's reiatsu spiking dangerously, and he took this as a sign that the strawberry was not in the mood to mess around and that he would not take no for an answer, let alone his reluctance to tell him what had become of the former juuban tai taichou.

He sighed again, turning away, not wanting to see Ichigo's expression after he had broken the news. "Two days after you were arrested, the entire first division was held under siege by Arrancar that had shown up out of nowhere. It was really scary, but they weren't here to fight. They wanted to make a negotiation. Basically, they'd leave us alone, for nows, anyway, but they were sent because Aizen wanted something in exchange for not blowing the place up. And, well, he wanted them to hand over Hitsugaya-taichou, and, well...the sotaichou agreed. They released him from his cell and took him to the first division, So I guess Aizen took Hitsugaya-taichou back to Hueco Mundo with him. I guess he wants to use him for the war or something, or maybe let the Arrancar feed off of his reiatsu? But hey, I'm sorry, it's not like I could have done anything to stop them anyway..."

Ichigo was quiet for a moment.

"Are you telling me the truth?"

"Yeah."

There was another silence before Ichigo abruptly shoved his way past Renji, storming off through the dank corridors of the prison.

"Oi, strawberry! Where the hell do you think you're going!?"

"To see the sotaichou!" Ichigo yelled back. "I can't believe they'd do this to him," he fumed. "Why would anyone just...Just trade Toshiro off like he was some kind of...some kind of object!? I'm going to get him back, Renji, and don't you dare try to stop me."

* * *

"What the hell do you mean!?"

"It is a regretable fate for Hitsugaya-taichou, but there's nothing we can do," Yamamoto answered calmly, gazing at Ichigo over his wooden cane. "It would be selfish to have an entire division destroyed over just one little boy. I'm sure you agree as well."

"_You're_ the selfish one!" Ichigo screamed back, completely losing his temper despite his better judgement. "You sent Toshiro to _die_, just to...Just to save your own cowardly ass!"

"Silence!" the sotaichou demanded, slamming his stick on the ground, hard. "He agreed to the terms himself, Kurosaki Ichigo. You are in no place to speak out against me, especially since I generously allowed you to be released from prison and cleared of charges. Now, if you have nothing more to say, then you are excused."

"You...You..." Ichigo's fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles had whitened exponentially. He resisted the urge to scream and slice the old man into bits with Zangetsu, but that would be extremely unwise. Instead, he merely settled to state, quite plainly, "Fine. Then I'm going to get him back."

"You will do nothing of the sort."

"I'll do it if I want to."

"You are forbidden."

"Then you're basically condemning him to death, aren't you!? You expect me to just sit here and do nothing, when he could be dying, or maybe even worse!?"

"That is exactly what I expect you to do."

Ichigo clenched his fists again, giving Yamamoto one final glare, dripping with hatred, before turning tail and exiting the first division office without so much as a final backwards glance. He was way too pissed off to care what the old man said, and he certainly wasn't going to follow his orders, either.

"Ichigo! You going to Hueco Mundo or what?"

The strawberry stopped. In his rage, he hadn't noticed that Renji had been following him since he had left the first division office.

"Are you going to try to stop me?"

"Ichigo, let me go with you."

Surprised, the orange-haired youth blinked. "What?"

"I'm going, too," the sixth-squad fukutaichou insisted. "Don't want you diving in there alone and dying a useless death."

A small smile appeared on Ichigo's face as he nodded. "Fine," he replied, "But don't blame me if you get in trouble, baka."

"I'm not the only one, you know. Matsumoto-fukutaichou's coming, too."

"What!? Hey, what d'ya think this is, a party!?"

"Sorry, but Hitsugaya-taichou's her captain. It's not fair to not let her come if she wants to."

"You have a point," Ichigo mused. "Well, tell Rangiku-san she'd better be ready to leave by tomorrow morning."

Renji grinned. "Gotcha."

The secret rescue mission was underway.

* * *

Hitsugaya blinked, feeling vulnerable without his haori on his shoulders and without Hyorinmaru on his back. The Arrancar had taken the sword with them upon departure from Soul Society. It had all happened so fast, and he was still wondering what the hell he was doing in Hueco Munco and why the hell he had allowed himself to be taken there.

Then, he began to recall the past events, which had gone by in a blurry rush.

_There had been three Espada; the fourth, the sixth, and the tenth, in the group and several other various leser Arrancar. They had the entire first division surrounded, but yet, Yamamoto had not permitted or sent for units to attack the invaders. Instead, he had merely asked them a simple question._

_"What is that you want from us?"_

_"Aizen-sama requests that you hand over the juuban tai taichou."_

_"Very well."_

_Then, Hitsugaya had been released from prison, and informed of the situation._

_"They want you to go with them to Hueco Mundo. The entire Soul Society is in danger...Will you do as they ask you?"_

_He didn't know why he had agreed._

_"I will."_

And so here he was, in the middle of Las Noches, in the middle of what seemed to be a gloomy-looking throne room of sorts. The entire hallway was dimly lit, and he could barely make out the outline of what seemed to be a figure reclining in the large chair at the room's front. He didn't even have to guess to know he was, or who the two people standing on either side of him was. They were all traitors, the lot of them, and he held them in the lowest regards.

"What do you want from me, Aizen?" he demanded, trying not to let the fear show through his shaky voice.

The man looked down at him through cold, amused eyes. "There's no need to speak to me so harshly, is there, Hitsugaya-kun? It's been a while, and I'm sure that you've missed me, correct?"

The Arrancar standing around the room laughed at this, and Hitsugaya stiffened. He was aware of the fact that there were two Arrancar standing behind him, and any wrong move would mean bad news for him if the Arrancar were to react.

"I'd rather die than say that I've 'missed' you, Aizen."

"Ah, so rude," Aizen sighed, "I don't know what to do with you, Hitsugaya-kun...But I highly suggest that you learn some manners soon and address me as "Aizen-sama." I would hate to have some kind of tragic misfortune falling upon you and ruining that pretty little face of yours. Wouldn't that be a shame, now?"

"You-"

"I don't remember giving you permission to speak, Hitsugaya-kun. Now, then, I will have you shown to your quarters, where you are to stay like a good boy until I have further instructions for you." He turned to a nearby Arrancar, snapping his fingers. "Bring little Hitsugaya-kun to his room," he ordered. "Quickly."

Before he had a chance to respond, Hitsugaya felt the Arrancar that Aizen had addressed seize him, twisting his arms behind his back in order to restrain his movement. "You bastard," he growled from between gritted teeth, glaring at Aizen through hateful eyes.

He didn't have the chance to say anything more, though, as the Arrancar dragged him off, cackling gleefully at the boy's helpless state.

"Move faster, boy," the Arrancar growled as it pulled Hitsugaya out of the room, attempting to drag him further down the hallway they had entered. Attempted being the keyword here, Hitsugaya seemed to be stubbornly resisting, dragging his feet and trying to make himself a deadweight. There was no way he was going to go quietly without at least some resistance.

"Shinigami," the Arrancar hissed. "Just sit still like a good little boy."

"I'm not inclined to."

"You little bitch!"

The next second later, Hitsugaya found himself being thrown viciously against the stark white wall, and then, a moment later, the Arrancar's hands shot out to grasp him by the throat.

"Let...Let go of me," the white-haired boy choked, his hands gripping hard at the Arrancar's hands, only to receive nothing more than having his head slammed against the wall again with a painful impact.

"You heard him. Release him."

Both Hitsugaya and the Arrancar froze.

"I said, release him. Aizen-sama did not specify that you were allowed to do anything more than taking him to his room."

The voice had come from a figure who had suddenly appeared behind the Arrancar. He appeared to be a tall young man, with inky-colored hair, but his face was not visible, as it had been covered by a blank white mask.

The Arrancar snorted in contempt. "Mind your own business."

There was a flash of steel, the sound of a katana being unsheathed, and the a fountain of blood spurted into the air. The Arrancar howled in agony, releasing Hitsugaya, who crumpled to the floor, gasping for breath.

With a roar, the Arrancar reached for its own zanpaku-to, but it was too slow. There was the sickening sound of a blade being drawn across its throat, before with a final wheeze of panic, it toppled to the floor, dead.

Confused, Hitsugaya looked up to see who his rescuer might be.

The figure knelt in front of him, his hand reaching out to tilt the young prodigy's chin upwards, seeming to be observe his face.

"It's been a while," the masked figure finally spoke. "You've changed, Toshiro. You have the same pretty face I remember you having...But your eyes. They're not the same...But you still bring back the memories, eh?"

"Who are you?" Hitsugaya demanded angrily, shoving the young man's hand from his face. "Don't touch me." There was something so familiar about this person and his reiatsu, but yet, he was still struggling to put his finger on who it might be.

"Toshiro, don't tell me you don't recognize me."

"Show me your face," Hitsugaya demanded simply. "I want to see your face."

"As you wish, Toshiro." The man reached to his mask, his fingers curling around its white edges, slowly pulling it from his face.

Hitsugaya's eyes widened.

"K...Kusaka..."


	12. Hide and Seek

Author's Note: Sorry if bringing Kusaka back in sounded kind of random and weird. You're probably thinking, "What the hell!? Why is _he _there!?" You're in good company, because that's exactly what Hitsugaya's thinking too at the moment! I'll try to come up with some alibi for my attempted "twist," so, yeah. All in due time, and I'm really sorry if bringing him back sounded lame, but I had no better ideas. And Ichigo will have competition now, right? (And yes, Kusaka's from the movie. I've actually taken a strong liking to the IchiHitsuKusa love triangle by this point.) By the way...I know this sounds completely stupid, but how do you check your PM's? I have no idea how to...

* * *

"K...Kusaka..."

Hitsugaya stared up into the raven-haired man's face, his eyes wide with both confusion and surprise. It had been so long ago since he had last seen his former fiancée, so he hadn't been expecting his sudden appearance. And, just exactly what was he doing here, in Hueco Mundo, of all places? Was he dreaming?

Slowly and uncertainly, Hitsugaya reached up with a trembling hand to touch the youth's face, withdrawing it quickly upon contact. It was real flesh, it felt warm to the touch. He wasn't just some random illusion or a mirage, he was really...

"I've missed you, Toshiro," Kusaka smiled, reaching out and rumpling his hair affectionately. "Looks like you really _did_ become a taichou like I asked you to. You're still Soul Society's little prodigy, eh?" He sighed, continuing with a small laugh, "I wish I could have been there to see you become the juuban tai taichou, even if you aren't anymore."

_This unconditional warmth...his voice,_ Hitsugaya thought to himself, still staring at Kusaka in disbelief. _The way he laughs, that smile of his, his warm eyes, the way he makes me feel at least somewhat safe..._

_It really is Kusaka, isn't it? Isn't he? _

"It's really me, Toshiro," Kusaka added, seeming to have read the boy's doubtful thoughts. "It's really me."

"Kusaka...!" Without warning, Hitsugaya suddenly flung his arms around his neck. This was extremely uncharacteristic of him, but he couldn't help himself, though he wasn't about to stay like that. "I-I'm sorry," he muttered, quickly pulling away, slightly embarassed. "It's just that I've...Well, I've missed you, and...and..." He decided it'd be best to switch the subject now. "And what are you doing here, Kusaka!?"

"I could ask you the same thing myself."

Hitsugaya looked down, muttering with a hint of shame in his voice, "Soul Society traded me in exchange for temporary peace."

Kusaka raised an eyebrow. "What is it with Soul Society?" he sighed. "They always seem to be against the two of us, don't they?"

"I-It's not entirely their fault, I...I agreed to it as well, and..."

"It's alright, Toshiro. You don't have to worry about them anymore, it's not like they ever cared about you or anything like that."

"What are you saying?"

"Look, Toshiro," Kusaka continued, looking the boy straight in the eyes. "Soul Society doesn't want anything to do with the two of us anymore. If they find out I'm here, I'm sure you know what'll happen. They're not as great as they make themselves seem, they're shinigami, so what? All that stuff with the Gotei 13, and what for? To protect a so-called "King" that none of us have even seen before? To protect humans who continue to deny our existence? I still haven't forgiven them for taking you away from me, Toshiro, and they _still_ continue to treat you like shit. It's the last straw for me. But let me tell you something. I'm not loyal to Aizen, either, though he apparently thinks I am. You can't trust _anyone_ in this world, not Soul Society, not Aizen, not his Arrancar. You've got to stick with me, okay, Toshiro? There's no doubt that Aizen plans to hurt you as well. I've failed you already, and I don't want to see you suffer anymore, understand?"

"Then answer me when I ask you a question, Kusaka. I don't want to repeat myself again."

A small smile made its way into Kusaka's features as he patted Hitsugaya's head again. "You're just the way you were back in the old days," he laughed. "Still a stubborn, blunt one, aren't you?"

"Shut up! You're pretty stubborn yourself!"

"Ah, I guess you're right...But anyway, about your question. I'm not exactly too sure how I got down here myself. Probably some kind of fluke in my death or something, whatever it was, I'm not sure..." At this point, he placed the mask back on his face. "That's why I have to wear this. I don't want Aizen to recognize me. If he does, he'll take Hyorinmaru, as he's already done to you, which leaves you practically defenseless except for your kido."

There was a sudden noise from somewhere down the hall, the sounds of several Arrancar shouting and approaching the area.

"Quick, Toshiro," Kusaka whispered, grasping Hitsugaya's hand tightly and pulling him to his feet. "We've got to hurry and get out of here. Aizen won't be happy if he finds out what's happened."

"Kusaka-"

"Shh!" the raven-haired youth clamped a hand tightly over Hitsugaya's mouth, quickly pulling him behind a wall. "Conceal your reiatsu. It'll give us away in a second."

"Mmph."

"What's that?"

"Mmph."

"Speak up."

"_MMPH!_"

"Oh! Ah, sorry about that, Toshiro." He hastily took his hand away from Hitsugaya's mouth, but promptly placed his finger to the boy's lips to signify that being quiet was essential and could potentially be a matter of life or death. Kusaka peered cautiously around the corner of the wall, inhaling sharply. There was an Espada in the group. A certain blue-haired Espada with eyes in a similar shade.

Shit.

The group of Arrancar stopped at the sight of their fallen comrade's corpse on the ground, the wound on its neck still gushing blood.

"Hah! Stupid idiot! He had to go and die."

"Shut the fuck up, all of you!"

"Y-Yes, Grimmjaww-sama..."

The sixth Espada knelt by the fallen Arrancar's corpse, reaching out and brushing his fingers against the wound, frowning in distaste and wiping his newly blood-stained hands on the garments of one of the other Arrancar standing near him.

"Ha!" he scoffed, standing back up. "I can still feel that one masked freak's reiatsu around the cut. It's likely he's taken the little shinigami bitch with him too. Go and find them. I'll tell Aizen about this...And let's just say that he won't be happy about it." He laughed briefly before glaring at the group, which were all still staring stupidly back at him. "What the fuck are you guys still doing here!? Go look for them!"

"Y-Yes, Grimmjaww-sama!"

The group dispersed, and Grimmjaww disappeared.

"Shit," Kusaka muttered. "They're onto us now." Taking Hitsugaya's hand again, he quickly led him down another hallway, moving past the Arrancar before they had a chance to notice their presence. "Follow me."

After a brief while of running through what seemed to be an endless maze of corridors and hallways, Kusaka finally stopped at a room, opening the door and gently pushing Hitsugaya in. "I heard Aizen mention that this was where he planned to keep you," he whispered. "Stay here. Promise me you won't try to leave. If you do, and he catches you...Anyway, just...Just stay here. I have to leave now."

"Kusaka, stay with me," Hitsugaya begged. "If they find you..."

"They won't," he insisted firmly. "Don't worry about me, Toshiro. I'll be fine, okay? I promise you." He placed a soft kiss on the boy's forehead before turning away. "I'll come back for you when I get the chance, and we'll get out of here together. See you around."

And then he was gone.

* * *

"DAMMIT! Why the hell does this always happen!?" Ichigo growled in frustration. Renji, Matsumoto, and himself had successfully infiltrated Las Noches (again), but they found themselves at another annoying hindrance - From this point forward, the pathway through the castle split into three different branches.

"Relax, Ichigo," Renji snapped. "We'll just have to split up again."

"Yeah, and get the shit beat out of us in the process!"

"Shut up! You're just mad because you nearly died last time!"

"Both of you shut up!" Matsumoto interuppted. "If we're going to find taichou, then we're obviously going to do what Renji said."

"Fine," Ichigo grumbled. "But try not to hide your reiatsu too much, okay? It'll suck if we end up being unable to find each other again later."

"Good. Then let's go and find Hitsugaya-taichou."

So off the three of them went, each taking a different path - Renji down the first, Matsumoto down the second, Ichigo down the last.

As she hurried along down the dark hallway, Matsumoto couldn't help but feel a little doubt with herself. Obviously, Ichigo and Renji had already been to Las Noches, and they probably were better at figuring their way around, and had more battle experience. She herself had only fought Arrancar twice, and she hadn't fared very well against them at all. She was beginning to wonder if she had thrown herself into a hopeless mission, but her taichou's life was at stake. She had resolved to herself that she'd do her best to help him out, like he had for her over the years. Although he was strict towards her, it didn't change the fact that the two of them were close friends, and she would hate to see him trapped in Las Noches forever.

A sudden sound from behind her interupted her thoughts. Footsteps?

Instantly, the fukutaichou of the tenth division's hand jumped to Haineko, gripping the katana and ready to sheath it at the slightest provocation.

What was this uneasiness she was feeling? She didn't want to have to already face an Arrancar, she wasn't exactly ready for such a battle yet.

But this reiatsu was different. It wasn't an Arrancar.

"My, my...I never expected 'ta see you of all people here...What d'ya think yer doin' anyway...Rangiku?"

She instantly jumped back at the sound of the all-too-familiar voice, instantly unsheathing Haineko.

There was a silence.

"Gin...?" she called out uncertainly.

She heard him laugh in that mocking way of his, though she couldn't exactly pinpoint where it was coming from. "Go ahead an' put that sword away, will 'ya? I'm not here 'ta fight 'ya."

"Then get out of my way," she retorted through gritted teeth, her fingers curling tightly around Haineko.

"Hmm...'Ya want to save little Hitsugaya-kun, eh? Can't let 'ya do that, either, Aizen hasn't had his fun with him yet, an' interuptin' him wouldn't be very nice, hmm?"

"Gin, tell me where he is!"

"Nope."

"Gin. Please."

"Don' wanna."

"Then I'll force it out of you."

"I don't want 'ta have 'ta kill you, Rangiku..."

Matsumoto stiffened as Ichimaru appeared from the shadows, swallowing with both fear and dread.

"...But if 'ya insist on it so much...Then it ain't my fault."


	13. Sins

Author's Note: Whee-whoo. This fic is going to be approximately twenty chapters long, as opposed to my standard fifteen because I don't know if I can fit everything into just three more chapters. So here you go, anyways, this is chapter 13 for nows.

* * *

"Where am I?" Ichigo wondered aloud. It appeared that he had been running in complete circles for the past hour or so, and obviously, he hadn't been making much progress at all. "This sucks," he muttered, contemplating what he should do next.

At that moment, he felt a strange reiatsu and the sounds of hurried footsteps. He ducked behind a large pole, just in time to see a masked figure run by. "Geez, what's his problem?" he wondered. Was he running from something, or someone? Somehow, the figure seemed familiar, like he had seen his photograph somewhere before, or something like that. Whatever it was, he didn't have time to waste thinking about it at the moment anyway.

He'd have to find Hitsugaya, and find him fast.

Cautiously, he stepped out, turning down the corridor and hurrying off.

That was when he came to a realization.

The young man who had just gone by _was_ being followed, as he had expected, by a large group of Arrancar.

And he was about to run right into those pursuers.

"Shit!" the strawberry hissed, stopping abruptly upon seeing the horde of Arrancar charging down the hallway. There was no way he could get away now, it was either fight or run away. They had already seen him, and both options would cost him precious time.

"Hey, look! Who the hell is that!?"

"It's an intruder!"

"Seize him!"

Ichigo chose to run.

He didn't get very far.

As soon as he turned around to contemplate which route to take, he found himself smashing into an Arrancar.

The blue-haired, blue-eyed Arrancar, tattooed with the number six, turned around, a broad grin crossing his face.

_Oh, shit._

That was the last thing Ichigo remembered before everything went black.

* * *

Pacing back and forth restlessly inside the room he had been confined to, Hitsugaya couldn't help but worry. Hours had passed since Kusaka had left him there and run off, and he was wondering if he had gotten away safely, or if...

"Hitsugaya-san."

Blinking at the sound of his name and the door being opened, the white-haired boy turned around, his aqua eyes meeting emerald.

In the doorway stood Ulquiorra Schiffer, fourth Espada.

Hitsugaya did not reply, merely staring at the apathetic Arrancar, taking a small step back.

"Aizen-sama requests your presence."

Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed, before he looked back up at Ulquiorra. "What for?" he demanded.

"You'll find out soon, shinigami. Now, come with me."

Hesitating for a moment, Hitsugaya reluctantly stepped forward and towards the Espada, quietly allowing himself to be led from the room. This was most obviously hurting his pride; he was used to others following _his_ orders, not him following _their_ orders. He didn't have much time to dwell upon this, however, since they arrived in Aizen's throne room shortly after they had departed his own temporary quarters.

"Good to see you again, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen beamed, looking down at Hitsugaya from his position in his throne. "And thank you, Ulquiorra, for bringing him here. You are excused now."

"Hai, Aizen-sama." And with that, Ulquiorra had disappeared, leaving only Aizen, Hitsugaya, and a few other spectating Arrancar in the room.

"Hitsugaya-kun, I'm rather unhappy with you."

"What do you mean?"

"You know perfectly well what I mean...Anyway, have you been enjoying your little stay in Las Noches so far?"

"Not the least."

"Of course not," Aizen chuckled. "I haven't been very vigilant about keeping you entertained...I know, Hitsugaya-kun...Why don't we play a little game?"

"I refuse."

"Really?" Aizen asked, cocking his head. "That isn't acceptable, my pet."

Hitsugaya flinched at being called "pet."

"Well, then," the former captain of the fifth division continued. Clearing his throat, he called out to two Arrancar waiting behind the closed doors, "Bring our first little guest in."

The doors opened, and one of the Arrancar entered, dragging something - no, someone, with him, depositing his form on the floor.

Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "Kusaka..." he whispered to himself, his heart pounding. The young man was barely concious, his mask was gone, and there was a small but deep gash on the side of his face, steadily emitting a trickle of blood.

"What did you do to him!?" Hitsugaya demanded in a near scream.

"Not much. Don't worry, Hitsugaya-kun, I'll let him live...for nows. He's a strange one, he is...I never would have guessed he had the same zanpaku-to that you did. I now possess not one, but two of Hyorinmaru, that will help me greatly...Ah, I remember now, Hitsugaya-kun..." At this point an unpleasant smirk replaced his previous amused smile. "...You were his dear little fiancée, weren't you...?"

"Leave Toshiro out of this," Kusaka hissed through gritted teeth.

"Hold your tongue," Aizen ordered. "It's your own fault for not handing over your zanpaku-to first and sulking around in that silly mask of yours...Anyways, I'm sure Hitsugaya-kun is very eager to start our game. Bring in our second guest."

The second Arrancar entered, dragging with him another figure, who was struggling ferociously.

Orange hair and brown eyes.

The Arrancar threw the boy to the floor in front of Aizen, before stepping back.

"Ichigo...?"

"Oi, you!" the subsitute shinigami yelled, jabbing a finger accusingly at Aizen, even in his lowered state. "Yeah, you! Let Toshiro go right now!"

Aizen laughed again, his eyebrows crinkling in cold amusement. "But if we are to release him, there'll be no one left to enjoy the game, will there?"

"What game?" Ichigo demanded. "What the hell are you talking about!?" He glanced from Aizen, to Hitsugaya, to Kusaka, blinking. Ah, so the masked figure he had seen earlier _was_ someone he had seen before; Kusaka Sojiro, Hitsugaya's fiancée that had died quite a while ago...But what was he doing here?

"Very well, let's get started," Aizen beamed, turning to Hitsugaya. "Hitsugaya-kun, do you like gambling?"

"What?"

"Do you like to gamble, my pet?"

"No," Hitsugaya answered bluntly. "No, I don't."

Aizen shrugged. "Ah, well then." He looked at the Arrancar standing near the back of the room, calling out to them. "Gentlemen...Place your bets."

"I bet on the orange-haired one!"

"Nah, I bet on the dark-haired one."

"You're stupid! I'm betting on the orange-haired kid, too!"

"No way! He's going to pick the mask freak! I've got my bet on him."

"Wh...What's going on?" Hitsugaya stammered, his panicked eyes flickering from Kusaka, to Ichigo, to the bickering Arrancar, and back to Aizen.

"Don't worry, Hitsugaya-kun. I'll explain to you," he chuckled, gazing in an amused fashion down at the frightened boy. "Now, then, Hitsugaya-kun, what they're betting on is which of these two young gentlemen are to live or die..."

"What do you mean!? How do you-"

"...And _you_, Hitsugaya-kun...Are going to pick which one gets to live."

Hitsugaya's eyes widened in shock.

"Go on and pick, we haven't got all day now..."

Gritting his teeth, Ichigo glanced over at Kusaka, mentally thinking, _God, this sucks. It's hopeless...Why the hell would Toshiro pick me? I mean, the other Sojiro guy - That was his name, Sojiro, right? Well, I don't see why Toshiro would pick me over his fiancée..._

Naturally, the strawberry was a bit suprised at Hitsugaya's response.

Hesitantly, the young prodigy dropped to one knee, then the next one down, kneeling in front of Aizen. He inhaled before leaning forward and touching his head to the ground in the most submissive bow one could possibly achieve.

"Please, Aizen..."

"Your manners, Hitsugaya-kun."

"Please, _Aizen-sama_," Hitsugaya begged in a quiet voice that was nearly a whisper, "Please, I beg of you, let them both live."

"I'm not obliged to."

As Kusaka watched, he bit his bottom lip and looked down. It was a pitiful thing to see, Hitsugaya Toshiro, the formerly proud juuban tai taichou, reduced to _this_ state, throwing away the last of his dignity.

"I'm begging you," he implored desperately. "I...I'll do anything...I promise I'll do anything you ask of me, and...and..."

"_Anything?"_ Aizen repeated, the unpleasant smirk on his face widening.

"Hai."

"Very well," Aizen agreed, standing up, his smirk broadening still. "You," he commanded, pointing at one of the Arrancar in the room's rear. "Bring Hitsugaya-kun to my private quarters tonight at eight o'clock, sharp. I'd hate to be kept waiting...Ah, and bring some friends if you'd like as well. I plan on having some fun tonight...if you know what I mean, Hitsugaya-kun."

"Y-You...You _bastard!_" Ichigo screamed, completely losing his temper. "You sick-minded bastard! Do you have _any_ shame!?"

Aizen merely ignored him, instead, stepping down from his throne, approaching Hitsugaya and kneeling next to the terrified boy, who instinctively backed away.

"Don't forget, Hitsugaya-kun," he smirked, tilting his chin upwards, forcing him to look into his eyes. "Eight o'clock tonight. I'll be looking forward to it...Let's hope you enjoy it as much as I will." He leaned forward, dragging his tongue across the boy's neck, earning from him a whimper of discomfort.

"D-Don't touch me..."

As Aizen rose to leave, Ichigo could no longer control himself. Despite not having Zangetsu to aid him, he lunged at Aizen, infuriated that he would dare do and say such things to Hitsugaya. He couldn't believe how disgusting the man was, he had already stripped the boy of his pride, and now his dignity and honor as well? Was he never satisfied?

The Arrancar at the back of the room were on Ichigo in an instant, pinning him down to the floor, restraining him and preventing him from getting to Aizen.

With a laugh, Aizen turned back around, looking at Ichigo. "If you're that jealous, then you're welcome to join us as well, Ichigo-kun..."

_"You fucking bastard! I'll kill you!"_

Aizen made no effort to reply, merely snapping his fingers. The next thing he knew, Ichigo found himself and Kusaka being dragged back out of the room, and Ulquiorra had returned to take Hitsugaya back to his room.


	14. In Which Renji Regrets

Author's Note: I was rather disgusted with myself about the last chapter for obvious reasons...Ugh. I feel so impure now. I don't feel comfortable enough to write what actually goes on at eight o'clock in terrible detail (which would also require me to change the rating), so I guess what happens is better left to your imaginations. Unless you really DO want me to write it out... -twitch-

* * *

"So, well...Ichigo...Wait, that's your name, right? Ichigo?"

"Yeah."

Sitting inside a dank cell was extremely boring, but fortunately, Ichigo had company. Not very good company, in his opinion (he hated to admit it, but he actually was a bit jealous of Kusaka), but company nonetheless. At least he had someone to talk to.

"Well, I guess I should tell you my name, too, then."

"I know your name."

"Is that so?"

"Yep. You're Kusaka Sojiro, right?"

"Yeah." Blinking, the raven-haired youth looked at Ichigo with an expression of interest. "How'd you know?"

"Oh," Ichigo shrugged, deciding not to tell him that he had been rooting around in his files. "Well, um...Toshiro told me a lot about you."

"He did?"

"Yeah. He really loved you, you know. I bet he still does."

"How do you know him anyway? Not to be intrusive, but you seem to really want to save him. Are the two of you...dating or something?"

"Oh! No, no, nothing like that," Ichigo laughed. "Toshiro and I...Well, we're just friends, I guess."

"Good friends?"

"Not really. But, still...I'd do anything for Toshiro," the strawberry sighed. "He didn't deserve this. He's a good person, really. And, well..." He swallowed before speaking again. "You, Sojiro. You're one lucky guy. I bet you and Toshiro are going to be real happy later on in life."

"Yeah," Kusaka answered quietly. "Assuming we _do_ make it out alive."

"You will. Both of you."

"You know, we never wanted to be shinigami, Toshiro and I," he sighed. "I wanted to make him happy, so I asked him to marry me...He said 'yes,' and I figured we'd have the rest of our lives all taken care of from then on. I want to give him that fairy-tale ending everyone wants, you know - Happily ever after. But I failed him. When I saw him again for the first time in who knows how many years, I noticed that he's changed. I can see it in his eyes - he's lonely. But I just don't know what to do anymore. We can't go back to Soul Society, we don't belong in Hueco Mundo..."

"Hey, don't worry about it!" Ichigo interupted in what he hoped was a reassuring voice. "We'll figure something out, right?"

"I hope so."

"Toshiro's not helpless. Aizen can't break him _that_ easily."

"I guess you're right," Kusaka agreed. "That's what I liked about him so much in the first place. He was a stubborn kid back when we were students. Wouldn't let anyone take advantage of him because of his looks or his age. I still don't know what he saw in me back then. I was just like any other academy student, he could easily have his pick of anyone else if he wanted to, he was real pretty kid back then, you know? Still is. Just not as...innocent."

"Well, maybe you're special?" Ichigo offered lamely.

"I'm not so sure about that. I couldn't protect him and I _still_ can't."

"Hey, don't talk like that!" the strawberry insisted. "If Toshiro likes you as much as he does, there's got to be something about you."

There was a long silence.

Ichigo couldn't help but wonder if he was just making the situation worse.

What happened next suprised him.

Kusaka lowered himself to the floor, kneeling at Ichigo's feet and touching his head to the ground.

"Oi, what the hell are you..."

"Please, Kurosaki Ichigo," he started. "I know I do this alone...So please, I beg of you...Help me save Toshiro."

Ichigo said nothing for a moment, a bit caught off guard by the request. Then, he grinned agreeably. "Yeah," he answered. "Definetely."

* * *

Hours had passed since the infiltration of Las Noches, and Renji was starting to wonder how Ichigo and Matsumoto was doing. He hadn't run into any enemies so far, which was good, but actually rather boring.

He could feel Matsumoto's reiatsu faintly; she must be quite far away from him at this point. As for Ichigo's reiatsu, he couldn't feel anything, and that was either bad news, or just the fact that he was out of range. The redhead was hoping it meant the latter.

He stopped to rest for a while, deciding that running aimlessly might not do him any good, and he'd better save his energy in case an Arrancar appeared and would require him to fight. Then, he got back to his feet, deciding that walking and taking it easy for nows would be wise. Though, the sooner they found Hitsugaya and got the hell out of there, the better.

As he moved forward, he was wondering what time it was.

Evidently, in Hueco Mundo, telling time is probably a hard thing to do, since the sun never rose and it was difficult to distinguish night from day.

"Stupid Aizen," Renji muttered to himself, "He should get some clocks in here or something."

Yeah, a clock. A nice cuckoo clock, perhaps, like they had in the real world. And at every hour, its hinges would burst open, and a little wooden bird would pop out. Cute. Renji kind of wanted one of those himself to put in the office, but with Byakuya as his captain, that was out of the question. Damn.

It was completely silent. The silence was starting to bug the redhead, almost as if it was some kind of ominous indication.

However, his thoughts were interupted by the sound of a muffled scream ringing out across the corridors.

Renji blinked. He knew that voice.

"Hitsugaya-taichou?"

That was weird. Was something happening to him? Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

Silence.

He heard Arrancar voices, and his hand instantly went to Zabimaru, but relaxed a little when he realized that the sounds were coming from somewhere else, from behind the walls - In a seperate room? What was going on?

Renji decided to investigate.

Allowing his sense of hearing to lead him, the fukutaichou of the 6th division hurried down the hallway, and as he did so, the noise became increasingly audible. He stopped momentarily, pressing his ear against the wall - No, it was a door. Which most likely lead to another room. And the commotion seemed to be coming from this room, along with an impressive amount of reiatsu.

Cautiously, Renji opened the door by a finger's width, only enough to be able to see what was going on but without the room's occupants really noticing.

He instantly regretted it.

At the room's center seemed to be situated a bed of sorts. He couldn't see too well, as there were many Arrancar surrounding the area and blocking his vision. They were laughing at something that was apparently supposed to be funny...?

Another muffled scream.

More laughter.

He knew that Hitsugaya had to be in there, but he couldn't see much, only the boy's face, his hair dissheveled, locks of it clinging to his face with persperation, his eyes were squeezed tightly shut, unshed tears stinging at their edges and someone's hand was clamped tightly over his mouth. The boy was gripping the bedsheets tightly, his knuckles whitening as he clenched the material with his fingers.

His shihakusho was lying discarded on the floor nearby, and as Renji craned his neck to try to see around the Arrancar, he nearly puked.

Another scream. Another peal of laughter.

Feeling sick to his stomach, Renji hastily shut the door, breathing hard, rather...well, disturbed at what he had just witnessed. He rubbed his eyes fierecely as if it could erase the mental image that had just been branded into his mind - Hitsugaya Toshiro, the once proud captain of the tenth division, being _raped_ by what seemed to be at keast five Arrancar, and most likely Aizen as well. Raped, for god's sake. Renji had never felt more disgusted with Aizen before in his life.

Ichigo was going to have a fit when he told him about this.

He froze, hearing someone speak from inside the room.

"Hey! There was someone at the door!"

"Who was it?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know?"

"What should we do, Aizen-sama?"

Renji could clearly hear Aizen's voice adding to the mix of Arrancar vocalizations.

"Investigate it, then...In the meantime, I need someone to return little Hitsugaya-kun to his room. It seems he's had enough for the night, isn't that right?"

Shit. Time for Renji to run.


	15. Help

Author's Note: Poor Hitsugaya...I feel bad now. Poor Renji, too. I bet his eyes are bleeding. XD

Sorry about my little mess-up last chapter, for those of you who noticed...I fixed it, though, so if you didn't notice, then...oh well, I guess. By the way, this chapter is a little shorter than the last ones.

* * *

At the sound of the cell door being open, Kusaka and Ichigo both looked up, an Arrancar standing there, keys in hand.

"Get up, you two," it ordered lazily. "Aizen-sama wants to talk to you guys."

The two of them exchanged glances before they both stood. It was time to take action.

"Shame you guys missed last night's fun," the Arrancar snorted as Ichigo stood up. "You shoulda been there to hear the little whore scream and beg for mercy."

"You-" Ichigo caught himself just before he was about to throw out an insult. He couldn't do that now, otherwise the plan he and Kusaka had devised would be tossed down the drain. Instead, he settled to relax a little, giving the Arrancar a friendly smile. "Oh, really? I guess you enjoyed yourself?"

"Why do you care?"

"I don't really care that much. I'm just trying to be friendly," the strawberry shrugged.

"What the hell are you saying, shinigami? Cut the crap and come with me already."

"Oh, come on. Let's just be buddies."

"Quiet, you miserable little cockroach! Just wait until I tell Aizen-"

There was an explosion of spiritual energy, and the Arrancar froze, unable to move, before it pitched forward in a stiff-legged fashion onto the floor. From behind Ichigo, Kusaka had directed and placed a paralyzing kido spell on it.

"Thanks, buddy," Ichigo laughed, "But we'll go see Aizen ourselves. C'mon, Sojiro, let's get out of here."

As they passed the motionless Arrancar on the floor, Kusaka kicked him, hard - where it hurts most.

The Arrancar howled in agony, attempting to get up, but could not.

"That was for calling Toshiro a 'whore,' you bastard," Kusaka muttered before hurrying after Ichigo, who was already running towards the exit.

* * *

"Hm, Hitsugaya-kun, did you enjoy yourself last night?"

Hitsugaya said nothing.

He didn't remember much about the previous night. All he recalled was a mess of Arrancar faces, excruciating pain, multiple pairs of hands grabbing at his body and his hair. Somewhere down the line, he had blacked out, and when he had came to, he had found himself back on the floor inside his room. Then, he had been escorted back to Aizen's throne room; the traitor obviously had wanted to speak to him again.

"Nothing to say?"

"No."

"Well, in that case," Aizen shrugged, "Let's get started then. I'm rather bored, and I want a little entertainment...Similar to last night's."

"I refuse."

"Refusal isn't an option, pet."

"I refuse anyway."

Hitsugaya blinked as Aizen's image disappeared from his throne. Before he could even react, he felt a pair of hands on his waist, hot breath flickering across his neck, and Aizen's voice directly in his ear.

"Don't be so uptight, Hitsugaya-kun...Maybe if we remove your clothes, you'll lighten up a bit, hmm?"

Horrified, Hitsugaya tried to push the man away from himself, but Aizen reached out with one hand, seizing both of his wrists and curling his fingers tightly around the flesh, his other hand going for his obi belt, tugging the material loose.

"S-Stop it!" Wrenching away from him, Hitsugaya tried desperately to pull the folds of his shihakusho back together to hide his body from Aizen. He was having some difficulty with this; the garments had slipped down below his shoulders. There was no way he was going to let him do as he pleased again, it had already been humiliating enough.

"Don't be a naughty boy, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen chided, approaching the boy, taking hold of his wrists again. "There's no need to be shy."

"Let go of me, you bastard!" he screamed, struggling against Aizen's grip in a desperate attempt to save a shred of his pride.

Suddenly, Aizen drew back, releasing the boy and hissing in pain. The next moment later, Hitsugaya found himself wrapped in a pair of strong arms against the chest of his rescuer, a good distance away from Aizen.

"Ichigo...?"

"Sorry it took us so long, Toshiro," the strawberry responded.

"Where's Kusaka?"

"Don't worry. He's fine."

Turning his head to look around him, Hitsugaya spotted Kusaka a few feet away, sheathing his katana. Somehow, the two of them had gotten their zanpaku-to back, and they had attacked Aizen, though at this point the Arrancar in the room were in an uproar, enraged that the two had dared attack their leader.

"You two have some nerve, Ichigo-kun...Sojiro-kun," Aizen chuckled. "Very well, then, if you insist on causing trouble..."

Kusaka turned, throwing something to Ichigo, who caught it, setting Hitsugaya down on the floor as he did so.

"Here," he said, placing the object in Hitsugaya's hands. It was Hyorinmaru. "You'll be needing this."

His chocolate-colored eyes darted to the exit. Already, some of the Arrancar were running to block any means of escape. "Shit," he muttered, turning to Kusaka as if to ask what the hell they were supposed to do next.

In return, Kusaka glanced from

Aizen, to Ichigo, to the Arrancar, and then to Hitsugaya, biting his lip.

"Ichigo," he finally said, "Take Toshiro and get out of here. I'll buy you some time."

"What...?"

"You heard me! Hurry up and run! There's not much time left!"

"Sojiro's right," Ichigo murmured, grabbing Hitsugaya's hand. "Toshiro, we've got to go."

"No!" Hitsugaya snapped, pulling his hand away. "I...I'm not leaving without Kusaka."

"Toshiro, _let's go_," Ichigo urged.

"Ichigo, please, we have to give Kusaka a chance, we can't just leave him here..."

"Yes, you can!" Kusaka shouted back. "Get out of here, both of you. Don't worry, I'll catch up later."

"Kusaka..."

"And one more thing, Ichigo," the raven-haired youth added.

"Yeah?" the strawberry inquired. The Arrancar were closing in fast, and they couldn't afford to stall any longer.

"Promise me you'll protect Toshiro with your life. Drag him out of here if you have to."

"I promise."

"Thanks," he smiled, turning back to face the Arrancar.

"Kusaka, no!" Hitsugaya screamed, despite Ichigo attempting to pull him away. "You can't do this to me! Please, you can't leave me again..."

"It's alright, Toshiro. I love you, okay? I...I'll see you later, I guess."

"Toshiro, leave him! He's made up his mind. Don't waste his efforts, okay? He'll be fine. I promise."

"But, Ichigo-"

"Trust him. He's your...your fiancée, isn't he? So don't worry. It'll be okay. Let's go."

Turning to look at Kusaka one last time, Hitsugaya finally reluctantly allowed Ichigo to take his hand again and start off towards the exit, unsheathing Hyorinmaru, cutting down the Arrancar in their path with Ichigo and Zangetsu's help.


	16. Retreating and Remeeting

Author's Note: Yes, by now, I bet you're wondering what's going on with Matsumoto and Renji. Rest assured, it will all come back together in good time. And sorry I didn't update, I lost track of time...

* * *

Holding tightly to Hitsugaya's hand as if he was afraid that he would slip away, Ichigo hacked his way viciously through the crowds of Arrancar trying to deter their path to the room's exit. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kusaka, facing an even larger amount of Arrancar on his own with the aid of his zanpaku-to.

As he slammed Zangetsu into the stomach of a hapless foe, beheading another, he stole a quick glance at the white-haired boy.

He didn't expect to see the tears that just barely inched past the boy's lashes.

At this sight, Ichigo couldn't help but feel a slight pang of both guilt and jealousy. He knew that they were leaving Kusaka to a fate that, In a 4 out of 5 chance, would most likely end in death. That was the guilt portion. Although he knew it was incredibly rude of himself, he also was thinking that Hitsugaya rarely showed much inflection aside from his usual haughtiness, which left him jealous and wondering; if he was the one staying behind to give the other two a chance, would the former tenth division captain be crying for him as well?

Shaking the thoughts out of his mind as he gave Zangetsu another hard swing, he noted that the exit was getting close. Just a few more steps and they would be there.

"Get the hell out of my way," he growled as he cut down an Arrancar in front of him, while at his side, Hitsugaya successfully eliminated the final one. Their path to escape was now clear, but Ichigo noticed that Hitsugaya seemed hesitant to leave. He was constantly looking over his shoulder as they ran for the doors.

"Toshiro, come on," Ichigo urged, releasing his hand in fear that maybe he had been gripping on too tightly. "We're clear, so let's hurry and get out of here like Sojiro asked us to."

Reluctantly, Hitsugaya turned again to take a final glimpse of his fiancée.

Ichigo turned, too.

He regretted it.

Both boys looked back just in time to see Kusaka go down.

What had occurred was a blur of Arrancar bodies and zanpaku-to, and Ichigo couldn't see much except for blood, blood, blood, more blood, and oh – did I mention blood? It was unclear what exactly had happened, or which Arrancar had delivered the blow that would kill the young man.

However, it became apparent that his killer had not been an Arrancar.

It had been Aizen himself, which was evident by the fact that the man calmly was standing in front of the group as if nothing had happened, holding his sword, which was stained scarlet with fresh blood.

Hitsugaya's hands flew to his mouth to fight back the scream that was threatening to escape his lips, his eyes widening to the size of saucers and his face paling as he watched Kusaka's body hit the ground, a lake of blood spreading across the floor as shards of ice rained to the ground; the remnants of Kusaka's zanpaku-to.

"K…Kusaka…No…"

There was a pause before Hitsugaya spun around to face Aizen, Hyorinmaru clasped in his hands.

"Y-You bastard!" he screamed, completely losing it, not caring that tears were now streaming down his face as he was swallowed in his own fit of hysterics. "How could you!? You _killed_ him! You murderer! You son of a bitch! I'll…I'll cut you into pieces! I'll kill you!"

Aizen, on the other hand, looked rather pleased with himself, and he was entirely unaffected by Hitsugaya's frantic screaming. He merely shook his head apprehensively, replying, "That's not very nice of you to say, is it, Hitsugaya-kun? That troublesome fiancée of yours was in my way. And those who get in my way have no choice but to die."

"You…"

Ichigo's eyes darted to the left. The Arrancar were already heading their direction.

"Stop it, Toshiro!" he shouted, clapping his hand over the boy's mouth. "Sojiro's gone. You can't change that."

By this point, the boy was struggling viciously, trying to wrench free from Ichigo's grip, intent on inflicting physical harm upon Aizen.

Dragging him towards the exit, Ichigo figured he had no other option.

"I'm sorry," he muttered quietly before slamming the flat end of Zangetsu against the back of his head with considerable force. It was just enough to knock him unconscious.

Wincing, Ichigo hoped he hadn't hurt him too much. He hastily hoisted the boy's motionless form into his arms, running off through the doors, painfully aware of the Arrancar that were following close behind. He turned, ramming his elbow into the doors, slamming them shut, hoping this would stall the Arrancar for a while as he ran down the corridors.

Frankly, he had no idea where the hell he was going.

He took a turn, nearly slipping as he did so, but regained his balance and continuing on, Zangetsu secured to his back, holding the unconscious Hitsugaya tightly against his chest.

He stopped abruptly as he saw a figure running towards him, his heart freezing in fear. He couldn't fight and take care of Hitsugaya at the same time.

However, he was relieved to find who it was.

"Renji!"

"Thank god," the redhead groaned in relief. "Right, so you've got the boy, and now, let's get out of here. I've arranged with Urahara-san to open a garganta of sorts for us to cross into the real world with…And then we'll take it from there, I guess…"

"What about Rangiku-san?" Ichigo interrupted.

"What, you haven't seen her around?"

"No, not at all," the strawberry answered. "And we can't leave here without her. We've got to find her fast before something else happens.

* * *

Matsumoto was painfully aware of two things.

One. There was blood running down the side of her face, and her vision was blurred into crimson blots as the liquid found its way into her eyes. The outline of Ichimaru, the former captain of the third division, was little more that a series of red splotches.

Two. She was most definitely on the losing side. Ichimaru seemed relatively unscathed, which was bad news. He simply stood there with that perpetually smug smile of his, as if to rub in the fact that he had long surpassed her since the old days of their friendship.

But at least he hadn't been lying to her.

It was evident that he had kept to his word when he had said he didn't want to kill her.

All of the wounds he had inflicted upon her were superficial. They hurt like hell, like most other wounds, but he had purposely aimed for areas that had not contained any vital organs or that would not severely damage her.

Her upper arms, her thighs, her hands, her legs, her face. And where he did strike vital areas, such as her stomach and chest, the wounds were long, but fairly shallow and didn't bleed much.

"Why?" Matsumoto demanded, gripping Haineko whilst keeping a wary eye on Shinso, lest the fox-face let it extend again. Her free hand moved cautiously to her face to wipe the blood away from her eyes. "Why don't you attack me seriously? Aren't I your enemy? Isn't it your job to kill me?"

"I don't know what yer talkin' about."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't."

"Stop lying to me."

"I ain't lying to 'ya, Rangiku."

"Yes, you are!" she shot back angrily, her voice rising. "Am I not worth your efforts!? Go ahead, Gin! Try and kill me if you want!"

"It ain't that simple."

"I don't understand. What obligation do you have to keep doing this!? It doesn't make any sense-"

"It was nice seein' you around, Ragiku," Ichimaru interrupted, turning and beginning to walk away. "You'd better leave this place while 'ya still can."

"Gin, wait…"

It was too late. He had disappeared.

Seconds later, she realized why he had departed so suddenly.

Renji and Ichigo were approaching; they had most likely tracked her down by her reiatsu, and now, they had stopped in front of her. She glanced at Ichigo, noticing he was holding something in his arms – which actually turned out to be a someone.

"Taichou," she breathed, relieved he was safe and sound, at least for the most part. He appeared to be unconscious, but relatively unhurt. "Thank you, Ichigo-san," she smiled gratefully, "Thank you for saving taichou."

"Ah, it was nothing," the strawberry responded sheepishly.

"Are you alright, Rangiku?" Renji asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern as he noticed the numerous injuries on her body. "Were you fighting an Arrancar?"

"I'm fine," she replied. "And no," she added quietly, "I wasn't fighting an Arrancar. It was…someone else."

"Did you win the battle?"

There was a pause before Matsumoto finally responded.

"I don't know."


	17. Confessions

Author's Note: Sorry I haven't updated this fic in a while...I got caught up with one-shots and such...And I'm not terribly impressed with this chapter. It's a tad on the boring and talkative side.

* * *

When Hitsugaya opened his eyes, he found himself staring at an orange-and-black blur. He blinked again, hard, trying to shake off the throbbing pain in the back of his head. It didn't work very well, and the pain was worse yet as he began to regain more conciousness. As his vision cleared, he found himself staring into a pair of worried chocolate-colored irises.

"Ichigo?" he whispered, looking up into the subsitute shinigami's face.

"Yeah," was the strawberry's reply as he gave his small hand a squeeze. "It's me, alright."

"Where are we?"

"Don't worry," Ichigo reassured him, stopping him when he tried to sit up. "Just relax, okay? You need to rest. We're in Urahara's shop right now. We...Well, I guess whe got out of Hueco Mundo safely enough. It's all thanks to Renji, actually, he asked Urahara to prepare a portal for us to cross through before-hand. You'll be fine, so lie back down. Please."

He realized that Ichigo was right; they _were_ in Urahara's shop. He found that he had been placed on a futon on the tatami floor, which would explain why he was all nestled up in a pile of blankets. He supposed that Ichigo had somehow brought him back to the real world.

He winced, the pain registering itself back into its head.

"Toshiro, you alright?" Ichigo asked, the concern springing instantly back into his voice.

"I'm fine," Hitsugaya breathed, though he wasn't really. But he didn't intend on letting Ichigo know that.

"Taichou!"

Hitsugaya blinked, turning his head to see Matsumoto, who was standing next to Renji. "You're here, too?" he murmured.

"Yep," she answered, sitting down next to her captain. "Me, Ichigo-kun, and Renji. We all went."

"You didn't need to," he responded quietly. "You didn't have to go into all that trouble, just to..." his voice trailed off for a moment before he looked away. "And, Kusaka...he...?"

"I'm sorry, Toshiro," Ichigo muttered. "We couldn't do anything for him."

"I...I see." Hitsugaya bit his lip, a small pang stabbing viciously at his heart. _Again_. Kusaka had died because of him, _again_. "Thank you, anyway," he whispered, before closing his eyes and opening them again, as if this was just a bad dream that he needed to wake up from.

"Is there anything we can do for you, Hitsugaya-taichou?" inquired Renji, kneeling next to him.

"No, it's alright, there's nothing I need right now," the snow-haired boy answered. "You three must be exhausted from running around Hueco Mundo. Please rest as well, and...Oh, Matsumoto, you're wounded..."

"Ah...It's nothing," Matsumoto murmured sheepishly. Upon return to the real world and into Urahara's shop, she had bandaged herself up quite well - There were bandages wrapped around her head, arms, and chest. She had been a bit upset because she claimed it made her look like a mummy, but Urahara had assured her that she looked perfectly alright.

"What happened?" he inquired.

"Yeah, you never told us who you ended up fighting," Renji added.

Matsumoto shifted her position uncomfortably. There was a pregnant pause before, looking down in a manner that seemed somewhat ashamed. She finally answered, in a quiet voice, "If you insist on knowing..."

"Yes...?"

"It was Gin."

"You mean Ichimaru?" Hitsugaya asked.

"Yes, taichou."

"That bastard," he muttered, allowing himself to sink back into his pillows with a soft whimper of pain as he did so. "I'd kill him myself if I could..."

"That's harsh, taichou!"

"But I should."

"Don't worry about it, Toshiro," Ichigo added, reaching out to brush a stray lock of hair from his forehead. "All that matters is that you're alright...Thank goodness Aizen didn't hurt you as much as we thought he would have."

Renji shuddered. That sure brought back some rather...uncomfortable memories.

"You okay, man?" the strawberry inquired, glancing at Renji, who had just coughed awkwardly.

"Nah, it's nothing," the redhead answered hastily. "I'm fine."

At that moment, the room's door opened, and Urahara stepped in, dressed in green and black as usual, fan in his hand. "Ah, good to see you're doing well, Hitsugaya-taichou," the man called out cheerfully. "Feeling alright?"

"Could be better, but I'm fine."

"I see, I see. Well, there's someone here to see you, if you don't mind having another visitor right now."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. He came in from Soul Society."

Hitsugaya looked up again, this time, his aqua eyes meeting someone else's. This "someone" else had entered the room as well, walking in from behind Urahara. The boy's eyes widened ever-so-slightly as he whispered the title of his visitor aloud.

"S-Sotaichou..."

"I see you've awakened, Hitsugaya-taichou," Yamamoto answered in the usual gruff tone. "I heard from Urahara-san that you had been retrieved from Hueco Mundo by Abarai-fukutaichou, Matsumoto-fukutaichou, and Kurosaki Ichigo. I remember saying that it was forbidden of them to do such a thing."

"My apologies, sotaichou," Renji muttered, Matsumoto muttering in agreement. Ichigo, on the other hand, said nothing. Yamamoto raised an eyebrow, but other than that, did not bother to point out Ichigo's silence.

"Well, what's done is done," the elderly captain of the first division continued, "And since you are back, Hitsugaya-taichou...I'd like to ask you to return to Soul Society. I have reinstalled your captain position; we need all the manpower possible if we are to face Aizen, who will undoubtedly return eventually. I have your haori here, and I see you have already reclaimed your zanpaku-to, so I will give you a choice. You will either return to your former position, or you will live the rest of your life exiled in the real world. What will it be?"

There was a long and uncomfortable silence.

"I...I will return, sotaichou."

"Very well."

As Hitsugaya unsteadily rose to his feet, teetering dangerously, Ichigo instantly sprang to his side to support him, an arm shooting around his waist to prevent the fragile boy from toppling over. "Toshiro, think about it," he whispered. "You...You're in no condition to fight. You can't go back."

"What I do is none of your business," he responded coldly, pulling away from Ichigo. Slightly hurt and slightly ashamed, the strawberry looked away, catching Renji's eye for a moment. The redhead gave him a glance as well, as if to say, _"It's alright. It's his decision, after all."_

Hitsugaya approached the sotaichou, who, in turn, held out a folded garment. As he unfolded it, he realized that it was the tenth division haori. Uncertainly, he reached out, taking the haori. Yamamoto watched him expectantly, and so Hitsugaya hesitantly pulled the haori back on over his shoulders.

"Good," the sotaichou aproved. "Then you are to return with me to Soul Society immediately. I must brief the other captains on the current situation at hand...Abarai-fukutaichou and Matsumoto-fukutaichou, I'll ask you two to stay here in the real world and report if anything suspicious occurs. Now, Hitsugaya-taichou, come with me. We are to depart at once."

"Hold on a minute!" Ichigo snapped angrily. "Toshiro's still wounded, and you're just going to throw him back into Soul Society and expect him to fight!?"

"Ichigo, I have my duties as the juuban tai taichou," Hitsugaya responded plainly. "You have yours, too...And they do not include meddling in my business."

"But, Toshiro-"

"I'm ready to leave now, sotaichou," Hitsugaya muttered, turning away from Ichigo as he slung Hyorinmaru over his shoulder.

"Very well," Yamamoto replied, "The gate that Urahara-san set up is still in order. Come with me."

With a small nod, Hitsugaya followed Yamamoto out of the room, leaving Ichigo to stand there in stunned silence, looking at the floor in shame. He should have known this would happen all along; perhaps Renji _had_ been right. Here, he had just risked his own life to save him, and he was just going to walk out on him like that?

"So, what's the deal?" Renji asked. "You're just going to let him leave?"

"There's nothing else I can do," Ichigo replied bitterly, his hand slowly curling into a fist.

"Idiot!" Renji snorted. "You're smart enough to know that there _is _something you can do...And you've got to do it _now_. It might be your only chance."

"I don't know what you're talking about," the strawberry huffed.

"Ichigo! _Tell_ him!"

Ichigo blinked at these words, slowly realizing that Renji could be right - There was a possibility that this _was_ his last chance. And he was just sitting back like an idiot and letting it pass him by. "I got it," he muttered, giving Renji an appreciatve look before hurrying out of the room after Hitsugaya and Yamamoto, just as the two were stepping into the gate back to Soul Society.

"Toshiro, wait."

Ichigo reached out and grabbed Hitsugaya by the wrist, stopping the boy in his tracks.

"What is it now, Ichigo?" Hitsugaya demanded, his voice rising in irritation. "I have to leave. You know I do."

"It's just that...that..." Ichigo faltered, unsure of himself. There was no way he was going to summon up the guts to say it. But yet, he _had_ to. He _had_ to find a way to somehow find the courage to tell the juuban tai taichou directly that ever since the first time he had seen him, he had been madly in love with him.

"Toshiro, I..."

"Yes...?"

"Hitsugaya-taichou!" Yamamoto snapped, "Don't waste anymore time! We can't afford for you to stall here."

"Hai, sotaichou," Hitsugaya answered. "I...I'm coming." He gently pulled his wrist away from Ichigo's grasp, and the strawberry looked up to meet his eyes - He saw plenty of things in those beautiful cerulean irises: uncertainty, guilt, and what looked like could possibly be regret?

"Toshiro," he blurted out frantically, stumbling clumsily over his words, "I...I love you."

His face burned hot with humiliation as he realized what he had just done. Maybe things would have been better off if he had just shut up and kept it to himself, and save himself from the suffocating embarassment that was gripping at his throat.

There was a long and extremely painful silence, before Hitsugaya finally spoke again.

"Kurosaki Ichigo...I wish that I could tell you I feel the same way as you do. But I can't. I just can't. I...I'm so sorry. I must have been such a burden to you this whole time."

"What do you mean?" Ichigo replied, his heart sinking further and further into the black depths of hopelessness. "I don't understand..."

"Loving you is something I simply can't do, even if I wanted to. I can't let it happen again...It's just that I don't want you to get hurt because of me, Ichigo. I mean, just look at where Kusaka ended up. It was all my fault, and I don't know what I'd do if I lose you, too."

"Toshiro, please. Don't tell me why you _can't_, tell me why you _don't_."

"You seem to misunderstand me," Hitsugaya answered, his voice barely above a whisper. "I am truly grateful for everything that you've done for me. You've always been looking out for me, risking your life for me...And because of that, Ichigo, I'm afraid that, despite my efforts...I _have_ learned to...to love you. But please understand that this is something that I had never wanted to happen. Like I said earlier, I don't want to see you hurt because of my selfishness, so I will do everything in my power to stop loving you, and I beg of you to stop loving me, as well."

"You..."

"Goodbye, Ichigo."

Before the strawberry could utter another word, both Hitsugaya and the sotaichou had disappeared.


	18. Illusions

Author's Note; Whoo, we've reached 100 reviews! Thanks a lot, everyone who's still patient enough to keep reading this load of shit...Anyway, I'll start winding things up now, because I intend on ending the story at 20 chapters, and then I'm going to start on a new one, a conspiracy-adventure, sort of like this one, set during the Soul Society arc. Of course, it will be IchiHitsu, and there will be references to Kusaka, but he won't actually make an appearance. I'll give more details on that later!

* * *

It had seemed like a span of torturously long ages ago, but Hitsugaya was painfully aware of the fact that it had only been an hour or so since he had left the real world; since he had left Ichigo behind along with his heart. And now, as if absolutely nothing had happened, he found himself back in his office.

Just like the old days, just like the days before he had first met the strawberry. He was starting to regret ever having spoken to him in the first place. Then, there would be no need for him to feel as if someone had thrown his emotions into a blender, jumbled them all up, and tossed them back inside his mind.

He seated himself at his desk with a loud sigh. His office was completely deserted, except for himself, of course. Everything was exactly as he had left it, so he supposed it was safe to assume that the sotaichou had not appointed a subsitute to run the tenth division in his place.

Usually, he enjoyed his personal time alone in his office. He normally liked the silence. But, for some odd reason, he was beginning to feel that maybe this silence and absence of human life wasn't so great after all. There was no Matsumoto giggling loudly as she would flip through magazines. He was amazed at how strange it felt to have no one to yell at, and he actually found himself missing his fukutaichou's antics.

Worse yet, the office was cold.

Unbearably cold.

Was there something wrong with him? Was he coming down with an illness? Hitsugaya wasn't quite sure why he suddenly wanted to feel some warmth. Not just any warmth; unconditional warmth. Emotional warmth. The warmth he couldn't help but feel welling up inside his chest whenever he'd see Ichigo smile at him.

He tried to shake these thoughts out of his mind. He couldn't afford to be distracted now, of all times. There was paperwork to get finished and a captain's meeting would convene in less than three hours. The stack of papers waiting to be filled out had reinstated itself during his and Matsumoto's absence.

Heaving forth another sigh, he opened his desk.

Everything, down to the position of each pen, was exactly how he had left it before. Exactly how he had wanted everything to be perfectly organized.

But yet, it felt so wrong.

With a sweep of his hand, he sent the calligraphy brushes, papers, ink wells, and various other items scattering, jumbling themselves around inside the drawer. He had just made a complete mess of the inside of his desk, but for some odd reason, he was far from caring. Instead, he merely picked up a brush, retrieved an ink well, set them on his desk, and took the first sheet of paper from the stack, readying himself to begin.

And so be began to methodically and quickly fill out each form; some numbers and dates here, his signature there, a seal and a stamp over here.

As he worked in complete silence, the door opened, and Hitsugaya looked up to see one of his subordinates. He was surprised at the fact that he had nearly not recognized a member of his own division. He supposed that his absence and the things that had happened in Hueco Mundo had done damage to his mind.

"Yes?" he asked, not bothering to look up from his paperwork.

"Ah...Erm, welcome back, taichou," the shinigami answered meekly. "Is there...Is there anything you need right now?"

"It's rather chilly in here," Hitsugaya muttered as he moved on to the next form in need of being filled out. "Would you mind turning up the thermostat?"

"Y-Yes, sir." The fidgety subordinate scrambled for the thermostat, wondering what in the world his captain was thinking. Normally, the cold didn't bother him, but now, he was asking him to make it warmer inside?

Hitsugaya seemed to have read his mind.

"Don't ask me why. Just do it."

"Hai..."

There was a pregnant pause before the subordinate shuffled back to his former position in front of the prodigy's desk, asking, "Erm...Is there anything else? An assignment or a mission that needs to be carried out, perhaps?"

"No."

That, too, was strange, the shinigami thought. Usually, his strict captain always had something for his subordinates to do, whether it was replacing the tiles on the office's roof or repainting the kanji character for the number "10" on the division's gates. He liked to keep them occupied because it kept everything running smoothly and kept them out of trouble, but yet, now, he had suddenly decided that nothing needed to be done.

"Uh, Hitsugaya-taichou...We're short on shihakusho uniforms for the new members, would you like us to arrange order forms for more?"

"It's not neccesary. I will take care of it later."

"Er, the paint on the back wall of your office is chipping because of exposure to the sun...Would you like us to refurbish it?"

"You don't have to."

"Then, would you like us to-"

"That's enough," Hitsugaya snapped, looking up from his paperwork in irritation. "If I tell you there is nothing that needs to be done, then there is nothing that needs to be done. Do not question the orders I give to you and the rest of the tenth division, do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," the shinigami murmured in an ashamed fashion. "Then what _do_ you want me to do?"

"I want you to get out of my office. Now."

"Hai..." The poor and somewhat frightened subordinate was only too hasty to comply as he hurried out of the office, muttering to himself, before exiting and closing the door tightly shut behind him.

It was silent again.

"Perhaps I was too harsh with him," Hitsugaya muttered to himself as he went on to the next document. "Maybe I shouldn't have used such a tone of voice with him..." After all he _had_ looked a little bit afraid when his voice had started rising.

Choosing to ignore these thoughts for the time being, Hitsugaya went back to the paperwork, his eyes occasionaly flickering to the clock mounted on the wall to monitor the time, lest he be late to the captain's assembly that was to occur later on. Fortunately, he still had about two hours left until the time for convening in the first division office would arrive.

Five minutes had not even passed before his office door opened again.

"What is it now?" he grumbled in irritation, slamming his brush down onto his desk and looking up.

He blinked.

His eyes widened and then narrowed.

_What the hell was going on?_

"What are you doing here?" he demanded, glaring at the figure that had just entered the office.

"You didn't have to speak to me so rudely, did you, Hitsugaya-san? It's me. Sojiro. Kusaka Sojiro."

Hitsugaya had found himself staring into the eyes of his former fiancée. There was no mistakening it, but yet, it couldn't be...Something wasn't right. Highly suspicious, the young prodigy's hand slowly crept to Hyorinmaru.

"You're not going to bust out your sword on me, are you?" he asked with a frown, approaching Hitsugaya, before extending a hand towards him. "C'mon. Let's leave this crappy place called the Seireitei. Let's go back to Hueco Mundo, okay? We can do whatever we want there."

Hitsugaya didn't move. Instead, he plainly spoke a single word.

"No."

"Why not? Don't you want to get married and live a good life and all that?"

"No. Stay away from me."

"Why're you acting so mean to me all of a sudden? It's not because of that Ichigo kid, is it?"

"No."

"Is 'no' the only thing you know how to say?"

"No."

There was a long silence before the figure stepped closer still, becoming more insistent. "Let's _go_. I don't have all the time in the world...Oh, and in case you really _are_ concerned about that Ichigo guy, don't worry about it. He's dead."

"You're lying," Hitsugaya answered in a voice barely above a whisper, his grip tightening around Hyorinmaru. "_You're_ the one who's supposed to be dead."

"Am I?"

"Yes."

"I was never dead. It looked like Aizen had killed me, but he hadn't really. I was playing possum."

"I don't believe you."

"And why don't you?"

"Because," Hitsugaya growled, standing up abruptly. "Because you're not Kusaka!"

He unsheathed Hyorinmaru in a flash of steel, disappearing and reappearing before his visitor with the aid of shunpo. Before anything else could happen, he slammed the katana through the figure's stomach.

There was a pause.

Then, the image of Kusaka shattered.

Panting, Hitsugaya instantly backed away. He knew exactly what was going on, and there was no way he could let his guard down if he wanted to keep living.

"I'm impressed, Hitsugaya-kun. You were able to see through my zanpaku-to's illusion."

As soon as the words were spoken, Aizen stepped into the office, the usual smile on his face. "No less of what I'd expect from you, though according to my plan, you were actually supposed to fall for my little trick...But I'm interested to know, how could you tell it was all fake?"

"It was obvious," the white-haired boy hissed through gritted teeth, still clutching Hyorinmaru as if his life depended on it. "I knew from the very beginning. Kusaka wasn't an idiot who would prance around Soul Society without his identity hidden. If it were really him, he would be wearing his mask. Secondly, Kusaka would never address me by my first name. I've known him long enough to be sure of it. Thirdly, he wouldn't speak so disrespectfully of Kurosaki Ichigo. Fourth of all, Kusaka would _never_ take me back to Hueco Mundo. Never. He knows that there would be no point, and the only thing waiting for me there would be _you_. And lastly, you neglected the fact that Kusaka isn't a coward who would pretend to be dead to save his own skin!"

"Ah, you really _are_ a boy genius, aren't you?" Aizen chuckled, stepping closer. "That's precisely what I like about you."

"You...You bastard," Hitsugaya murmured, backing away. "How could you? How could you disrespect Kusaka like that? Impersonating him and making him look like a complete idiot...I can't believe you. Stay away from me, and the rest of Soul Society, for that matter...Or...Or I'll kill you."

"You're convinced that your darling fiancée was a perfect person, aren't you?"

"I never said that..."

"...And that he was a noble, good, kind person?"

"He was much more 'noble, good and kind' than _you_. You have no right to speak of him like that."

"...So tell me, Hitsugaya-kun...You say Sojiro-kun wasn't a coward, but who was it that has been hiding from Soul Society all this time?"

"He didn't have a choice-"

"And who was it that sat back and did nothing about it when you needed him most?"

"He...Kusaka..."

"You don't need to say anything more, Hitsugaya-kun," Aizen smiled, "The point is, your fiancée was a worthless excuse for a shinigami...The only thing that I needed him for was his zanpaku-to. Without it, he'd be _nothing_. It's a good thing he died, too. He was just a pawn of mine, and he got in my way, so I killed him."

_"Shut the hell up!"_

Completely losing self-control, blind with anger that Aizen would dare say such things about Kusaka, Hitsugaya lunged at him, throwing himself into a hopeless battle, with nothing to gain, nothing to achieve, and _everything_ to lose.


	19. One Last Fight

Author's Note: Whoo, the second-to-last chapter! This chapter will have a lot of action. The final chapter will be just a sweet, fluffy little conclusion, so all the major conflicts will be wrapped up in this chapter.

And, I'm terrible at writing fight scenes, so forgive me about the fact that this chapter is so damn retarded.

* * *

"Juuban tai is under attack. Repeat, juuban tai is under attack. Please send medical relief squads and reinforcements immediately. Intruders in the Seireitei, all centered in the juuban tai area. All seated officers in the real world are to return immediately and provide assistance."

Matsumoto's face paled as she stood up, snatching Haineko up from its position on the ground and fastening it on her waist.

"What's going on?" Renji demanded, hurrying into the room, spotting the hell butterfly hovering in front of Matsumoto, who looked as if she was in a rush to leave.

"The tenth division!" she spluttered. "They're being attacked! We've got to go back there, now!"

Renji blinked, before answering, "Got it. I'll ask Urahara-san to ready a transport for us…Hey, Ichigo, are you coming?"

Silence.

"Ichigo…?"

The strawberry didn't answer. He was already bolting out of the room, ready to leave right at that second for Soul Society. He hadn't been listening to the hell butterfly's notice at all. As soon as the first sentence had been relayed, "Juuban tai is under attack," he had already gotten up, wondering if Aizen was behind this. Why was this happening? What did Aizen want? Why was he so eager to have the juuban tai taichou back in his traitorous hands?

In any case, there was only one solitary thought that was running through his mind at the moment.

"Toshiro…"

Meanwhile, Hitsugaya wasn't exactly having the best of luck with his own fight.

* * *

From the very beginning, he had already known that it was hopeless, but he had still started a fight he knew he couldn't win anyway, recklessly attacking Aizen due to his pride that had been damaged substantially by his "Kusaka sucks" lecture.

Katana met katana.

Metal screeched, ice crystallized over the blades.

It was going nowhere.

He slammed his blade into Aizen's again, shoving forward, only to be pushed viciously back three seconds later. The impact was nearly enough to knock him off balance, but he stubbornly stood his ground, moving in for another strike. As expected, Aizen blocked the blow directed at his head.

The temperature in the room dropped further as Hitsugaya swung his blade back, readying himself to release his shikai with a hoarse cry of "Soten ni zase, Hyorinmaru!"

"Are you sure you want to do that, Hitsugaya-kun?"

The white-haired taichou blinked. His eyes widened. No sooner had Hyorinmaru formed from the ice swirling around its blade, the dragon shattered into thousands of pieces. A blinding flash of light, searing pain, and the next thing he knew, he was on the floor in a crumpled and undignified heap, coughing blood onto the ground, a sharp pain shooting through his lower body as his katana clattered uselessly to the floor.

"Really, Hitsugaya-taichou, I don't have much use for you other than your zanpaku-to, just like that fiancée of yours," Aizen began, stepping towards the boy's prone form. "Not to worry, I am a kind-hearted man…And I'm sure you're eager to share the same fate as your precious Kusaka and be reunited with him in the afterlife, correct?" He knelt down, snatching Hyorinmaru off the floor.

"G…Give it back…" Hitsugaya gasped out, one arm wrapped around his bleeding abdomen, trying feebly to use the other to push himself to his feet.

"Maybe you ought to consider growing a few inches taller, eh, Hitsugaya-kun?" Aizen chuckled, dangling the katana high above the wounded prodigy's head. "Too bad for you. You won't live long enough for that."

Hitsugaya tried pathetically to shoot back an insult, but found it hard to speak, the blood filling his lungs and mouth. He retched, expelling the scarlet liquid onto the ground, then choked again, struggling for breath.

Aizen reached downwards, seizing the helpless boy by his throat, lifting him into the air effortlessly, savoring the whimper he recieved. His breathing short, ragged, and labored, Hitsugaya feebly clutched at Aizen's hands, trying to pry them away from his throat. Dark spots were swimming in his vision, his head was feeling frighteningly light. Gasping for breath, only to choke again, he made another futile attempt to free himself.

"L...Let go of me..."

"It's a shame, really. I'm sure that later on, I will almost regret killing such a pretty little thing as you, but I can't have you getting in my way, can I?"

"Y-You bastard…"

"Goodbye, Hitsugaya-kun."

* * *

"Wh-What happened here!?"

Renji, Ichigo, and Matsumoto stood in front of the tenth division office. The bodies of slain shinigami were strewn sloppily across the floor, scarlet puddles of blood splashed on the cold stone like some twisted art project.

"This is terrible…" Matsumoto murmured, her voice unsteady. "Are any of them still alive, and…and what about taichou!?"

"Oi!" Renji shouted, running towards oneof the forms on the floor, nudging the fallen tenth-division subordinate. "Are you okay!?"

The man Renji had addressed moaned in pain. He had lost too much blood and was unable to move.

"What happened here?"

"I…I don't know," the shinigami rasped. "Aizen-taichou came…Said something about needing Hitsugaya-taichou's zanpaku-to…Intended on doing something to him…and…and then…"

"And then what!?" Ichigo demanded frantically. "Where's Toshiro!?"

"Office…I saw just saw taichou there…not too long ago…"

"What did Aizen say he was going to do to him!?"

The man did not reply. He was already dead.

"Shit," Ichigo murmured, standing up, his hand wrapped tightly around the handle of Zangetsu. He turned to Renji and Matsumoto before grimly announcing, "That's it. I'm going in."

"Don't be stupid!" Renji snapped. "You're just going to barge in there all by yourself and expect things to work out!? Don't be in such a hurry, just wait until reinforcements arrive…"

"You want me to wait!?" Ichigo nearly screamed. "By the time they actually get here, Toshiro could be…" There was no need to finish the sentence. Hurrying past Renji without so much as a second thought, he ran to the doors of the tenth division office.

"Be careful, Ichigo-kun," Matsumoto warned as he moved towards the building.

"Yeah."

And with that, he forcefully threw the doors open, praying in his mind that the worst had not happened.

* * *

"Goodbye, Hitsugaya-kun."

Still suspended helplessly in the air thanks to Aizen's iron grip, the young prodigy couldn't breathe, couldn't speak. His arms felt numb and rigid, and they refused to obey his commands as they dropped limply to his sides. The room was spinning in circles around him, his vision failing him. He could barely make out the form of Aizen unsheathing his zanpaku-to with his free hand, pointing it at his heart, ready to deal the final killing blow.

Hitsugaya squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself. It would just be a brief moment of pain, he told himself, and then it would be over, and everything would be just fine.

At the moment, there were only two things on his mind.

_I suppose this is the end, then. Wait for me, Kusaka...We'll be together again soon, I hope..._

Not only that, but there was another name that came to mind, another face that he wanted dearly to see just for one last time until it all ended.

_I'm so sorry. Please forgive me..._

_...Ichigo. _

"Let go of him, you bastard!"

This, along with the sound of the office doors being slammed open was enough to startle Aizen into loosening his grip on Hitsugaya's throat as the former fifth-division captain glanced towards the door. Gasping for breath, his lungs once again able to fill themselves with sweet oxygen, Hitsugaya was also startled by the person's sudden entrance. Straining, he tried to move his head so that he would be able to see who had come in.

"Well, well, what a surprise," Aizen scoffed, "Who would have expected our hero, the noble and brave Ichigo-kun, to come barging in to save his precious little ice prince from certain death?"

"Are you hard on hearing?" Ichigo snarled, pulling Zangetsu from his back in a single movement. "I believe I've already asked you to release him." He lifted the heavy zanpaku-to, pointing it Aizen's head.

"And what if I refuse?"

"Then I'll kill you."

At these words, Aizen laughed. "What do you think you can do, Ichigo-kun? You're an intelligent young man, and I doubt that you haven't realized by now that you are going to meet the same fate as Sojiro-kun did."

"I don't care what you think. I told you to let Toshiro go. Now."

"I see no reason to."

"Don't make me repeat myself, Aizen."

"And what if I…"

Aizen didn't have the chance to finish his sentence. There was a flash of movement, and realizing that Ichigo was using shunpo, readying to strike at him with his sword, Aizen quickly moved to safety, but in the process was forced to release Hitsugaya.

Ichigo wasted no time in scooping the bleeding prodigy up into his arms, holding him protectively against his chest. Using shunpo again, he then moved back in order to put a good distance between himself and Aizen, before gently depositing Hitsugaya on the floor.

"I'm sorry I came so late, Toshiro," Ichigo murmured. "If I had been faster you wouldn't have such bad injuries…"

"Ichigo, I…"

"It's alright. Just stay back for now. Rangiku-san said she was going to call for a medical relief squad. They'll be here soon, so just hang in there, okay?"

"You want me to just sit here and watch!? You…You can't make me. Please, Ichigo, let me fight with you. I can't bear to simply sit back and watch again. I just _watched_ when Kusaka was killed, and if…If you…"

"I told you not to worry," Ichigo insisted. "Relax. I won't lose to Aizen, no matter what, especially after all he's done to all of us. Trust me on this, alright?"

"…Fine."

"Alright, then. Wish me luck."

Hitsugaya stared blankly at Ichigo's back as the strawberry slowly turned away to face Aizen.

_Why is he doing this? Why is he trying to protect me, even after I said so many cruel things to him? After I let him down?_

_He's going to be killed because of me. Just like Kusaka. Why does this always have to happen?_

_No._

_I can't think like this. Ichigo's not weak. All I can do now is hope…_

_…And give him strength._

"Ichigo, wait."

"Toshiro, seriously, just…"

"I…I love you."

There was a brief silence.

Aizen looked slightly surprised.

And Ichigo simply gave Hitsugaya a small smile in return.

"Thanks, Toshiro."

"How touching," Aizen interrupted, his voice amused. "However, I'm afraid I'll have to finish things up here. Go ahead and watch, Hitsugaya-kun. Watch him die, if that's what you want."

Taking advantage of the moment where Aizen was temporarily distracted, Ichigo lunged forward with a swing of Zangetsu. Aizen reacted only quick enough to bring his own blade up to block the vicious attacks that Ichigo dealt towards him.

"Bankai!"

There was an explosion of spiritual energy, and as the debris cleared from the air, Hitsugaya managed to catch sight of Zangetsu's new form, sleeker and easier to wield. Not only that, but Ichigo's garments had changed their form as well. The differences seemed to be slight, but just one glance was all the juuban tai taichou needed to be able to tell that his spiritual pressure had increased enormously in only a matter of seconds.

Ichigo moved forward again, parrying each strike that Aizen sent towards him, his attacks being blocked in return. Every now and then, he'd let his concentration slip, and every time this happened, he'd feel pain somewhere in his body and wet blood seeping through his kimono. Aizen was slyly resourceful, striking at the openings that Ichigo left in these brief moments of distraction.

And every time it happened, Hitsugaya would suck in his breath and knit his fingers tightly together in torturous anxiety.

Ichigo had managed to land a few blows on Aizen, though. By now, both opponents were exhausted and bleeding, still circling each other like ravenous animals waiting for the right time to strike.

"Ichigo…You promised me you'd win, you idiot, so you'd better," Hitsugaya demanded in the usual haughty voice, but it was wavering unsteadily.

That was good, Ichigo thought. He's back to normal. But he's already lost a lot of blood, and at this rate, if the fourth-division medical relief squad doesn't come soon, then…

"Got it!" he answered back over his shoulder, shaking the thoughts out of his head. Toshiro will be fine. For now, all I have to do is win this fight for him.

"Good…" Hitsugaya murmured. "Thank you, Ichigo."

As he said these words, the orange-haired shinigami threw himself forward, using the last of his energy, concentrating all his reiatsu into one final blow.

"Getsuga Tenshou!"

Hitsugaya never got to see the end results of the battle. Dizzy and faint from blood loss, the boy slumped motionlessly to the floor, unconscious.

Ichigo wasn't quite sure if he had won, either. He, too, blacked out as he thrust his sword through his enemy's skull.

And blood, along with thousands of fragmented memories, rained down to earth, ready to accumulate into puddles of remembrance.


	20. Memories in the Rain

Author's Note: Whoo, this is the LAST chapter. I'm so proud of myself for actually finishing a fic...I've started a new one and will post it later today or some other time in the very near future. It's called _Ryoka_ and you can check out my profile for details. In the meantime, I will also wrap up _The Pursuit of Happiness_ and continue on _From Me To You_, though I'm considering suspending that one because I'm not too fond of it.

Anyway, enjoy, and thanks for reading.

* * *

When he opened his eyes, Ichigo found himself staring at the stark, blank ceiling. With a groan, he tried to sit up, realizing that under his tattered kimono, practically his whole upper body was in bandages. He looked down, finding that he was sitting on a hospital bed of sorts, and he realized, he must be in the fourth division.

It was completely silent, except for the sound of rain pelting the ground outside.

Rain?

That was new. He didn't remember it raining in Soul Society before, but then again, he had never been there very long earlier, either.

Nonetheless, the strawberry, although still in a wounded condition, promptly decided that he wanted to see the rain.

He stood, making his way out of the room and down the hallway until he reached the main exit. Opening the door, he stepped outside to see thousands of droplets of rain falling softly to the ground in a muted melody.

With a sigh, he seated himself on the porch under the overhanging, looking into the grey sky and savoring the soothing sound of the rain hitting the earth, the earthy smell that the rain always brought, and the sight of the silver droplets falling from the clouds.

For a long time, he was entirely alone, just sitting there and staring. He had already lost track of the time, and he was wondering how long he had been out there.

That was when he felt a familiar reiatsu from somewhere behind him.

He turned to see Hitsugaya standing in the open doorway, quietly watching the rainstorm from behind him. He, too, was in bandages, Ichigo noted, but he was wearing only his kimono and not the tenth-division haori. The absence of his symbol of authority seemed to take away his haughty air and replace it with an innocent, almost child-like one.

"Toshiro…?"

"I was wondering when you'd notice."

With a small laugh, Ichigo patted the ground next to him. "Come on over and have a seat. I guess we can watch the rain together, if you want."

Hitsugaya hesitated uncertainly, before finally stepping towards the area Ichigo had indicated and sitting down next to him.

Unconciously, Ichigo absently wrapped an arm around Hitsugaya's shoulders, pulling him close. The boy didn't seem to mind this, so he went on to speak again.

"You like the rain?" he inquired.

"Not really," Hitsugaya answered quietly. "It's just that it brings back memories."

"Yeah. I know what you mean."

_Students shrieked, holding their books over their heads and scrambling frantically towards the buildings where they would be safe from the rain indoors. Some of the boys playfully splashed some of the shrieking girls with the puddles, while others just stood under the eaves of the roves, waiting for the storm to pass._

_Kusaka and Hitsugaya were one of those who were waiting._

_"Do you like the rain, Toshiro?" Kusaka asked with a smile._

_"No. Getting wet is so childish," Hitsugaya snorted._

_"Really? I think it's the second-best thing to ice."_

_"No, it's not. Rain and ice aren't even in the same league…Hey! Where the hell are you going, Kusaka!?"_

_"What does it look like?" Kusaka laughed as he stepped out from under the roof and into the open, where the rain instantly began to fall, drenching him from head to foot. "Come on! It's really fun. You should try it, Toshiro."_

_"Fun?" the snow-haired boy repeated indignantly. "You're crazy. Come back over here where it's dry before you catch a cold."_

_"Toshiro," Kusaka insisted, extending his hand towards him. "Try it. I swear you'll like it."_

_"Why are you always doing such immature things…?"_

_"There's nothing immature about living life to the fullest, is there?"_

_At these words, Hitsugaya's words trailed off. Kusaka was right. Life wasn't going to wait for him. It was just going to pass him by and slip through his fingers while he stood there stupidly, just because he didn't want to get wet._

_Uncertainly, he reached out, placing his dainty hand in Kusaka's, allowing him to guide him out from under the roof and into the open world where the rain reigned over the sky._

_"See?" Kusaka laughed, seeing Hitsugaya's wide-eyed expression as he promptly began to become drenched in the downpour. "It feels nice, doesn't it?"_

_"I guess you're right…"_

_With another laugh, Kusaka affectionately wrapped his arms around Hitsugaya, lifting him into the air and spinning him in circles. And despite himself, Hitsugaya found himself realizing that this was one of the happiest moments of his life._

_It was immature beyond comprehension, but by now, neither Kusaka nor Hitsugaya were even close to caring anymore._

_"Love you, Toshiro."_

_"I love you too, Kusaka, you idiot."_

Blinking hard, Hitsugaya forcefully wrenched himself back into the present as he furiously wiped at the tears stinging at his eyes with the back of his kimono sleeves, angry with himself for getting so emotional over a mere flashback that had been induced by the rain.

"Hey, Toshiro, what's wrong?" Ichigo inquired.

"I-It's nothing," he muttered quickly, trying to brush it off. "There was just something in my eye…"

"It's okay," Ichigo answered quietly. "There's nothing wrong with crying every now and then. That's what the rain is for."

"What do you mean?"

As Ichigo rose from his seat, Hitsugaya blinked. He was surprised to see that Ichigo, too, had tears slowly trickling down his face.

"Ichigo, why…?"

"I lost my mother in a rainstorm, just like this one. It was a long time ago, but…" His words fading, Ichigo slowly stepped out from under the overhanging, into the rain. He was instantly soaked, and as the rain ran down his face, it was impossible to distinguish it from the tears.

"…But the rain hides everything, right?"

"I guess," Hitsugaya murmured quietly, looking at his feet.

"Toshiro…"

At the sound of Ichigo calling his name, the juuban tai taichou slowly looked up.

Ichigo was holding his hand out, extended to him, a smile on his face. "Come on. I promise you you'll like it out here."

Teal eyes met brown.

That was when Hitsugaya realized that like Kusaka, Ichigo knew what life was. He knew how to live, not to survive, but to _live_. To be _alive_. And if it involved running out into a rainstorm, then so be it.

_Thank you, Kusaka…Thank you for allowing me to finally move on…_

With a small smile, Hitsugaya placed his hand in Ichigo's, allowing the strawberry to guide him out into the rain like Kusaka had years ago.

The rain hit him head-on right away, but he didn't mind. He didn't mind the frigid liquid drenching his hair and clothes at all, the chill seeping comfortably deep into the depths of his soul. Despite that, however, he felt surprisingly warm. All he needed was Ichigo's smile and his unconditional kindness. And for the first time in a very long time, he thought, that maybe he had finally found the peace he had been searching for ever since the day Kusaka Sojiro had died.

"See? It feels nice, right?"

"It does…"

There was another pause before slowly, Ichigo reached out, taking Hitsugaya in his arms and drawing him close, holding him tightly, before finally, leaning downwards and gently tilting Hitsugaya's face upwards with one hand, he pressed his lips to his.

Hitsugaya wasn't surprised, and he wasn't hesitant this time, either. He knew what he wanted now. He knew what he was capable of and what was best.

Slowly and softly, he reached upwards to wrap his arms around Ichigo's neck, deepening the kiss ever-so-slightly.

It didn't matter that the rain was still falling. It didn't matter that both of them were soaking wet. Nothing at all mattered at this moment.

And Hitsugaya realized something. He had been wrong at first, but now, he was confident enough with himself to assume one important thing.

This may have been a mistake, as he had personally told the strawberry himself before. This might not have been true, either, but even if it was, Hitsugaya Toshiro was utterly convinced by this point that falling in love with Kurosaki Ichigo had to be the best mistake he had ever made.

"I love you, Toshiro."

"I love you too…Ichigo."

* * *

_THE END._


End file.
